


Deepening Roots - Revised

by EricaX



Series: Heroes and Villains [1]
Category: Darkwing Duck (Cartoon)
Genre: F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-07
Updated: 2016-08-24
Packaged: 2018-07-22 01:23:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 38,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7412953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EricaX/pseuds/EricaX
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>REVISED 6-27-16 . A series of events leads Bushroot to start doubting himself as a villain, wondering if it is truly what he wants to be. Unfortunately, as he's trying to figure what all he wants, it seems his plants have other plans for him. Will he be able to stop mother nature from destroying St. Canard?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Title: Deepening Roots

Summary: A series of events leads Bushroot to start doubting himself as a villain, wondering if it is truly what he wants to be. Unfortunately, as he's trying to figure what all he wants, it seems his plants have other plans for him. Will he be able to stop mother nature from destroying St. Canard?

Disclaimer: None of these characters belong to me, but Disney. Only the story and its plot line is mine.

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It was a peaceful evening, though rain clouds were starting to roll in. The quiet of the night was interrupted when there was a small explosion on top of one of rooftops in uptown St. Canard. It was nearing midnight, a time of night where everyone should be sleeping or working their night shift. However, the time of night did not matter to the Top Most Wanted Criminal: Negaduck.

"We're TRYING to SNEAK in, you clowned freak!" snarled the yellow clad villain as he glared at the jester in question.

Quackerjack, the crazed toy maker that he was, gave a dramatic gasp and look at Negaduck as though he was highly insulted. "Well, excuuuuuuse me, Mr. Sour Puss! You ask for a way to break the lock, you said nothing about subtlety!"

Negaduck chose not to comment. Instead, he addressed all four of the villains surrounding him. "Alright boys!" he began. "Now that we've broken the locks, let's begin!"

Quackerjack giggled with glee as he brought out Mr. Banana Brain. "So, what's your plans, Stan?" the ventriloquist spoke in a high pitched voice.

The Liquidator stood beside him. "Are you anxious? Are you at the edge of your seat in anticipation!? Stay tuned and you'll hear our leader's master plan!"

Megavolt was too busy looking up at the sky which was filling up with more and more clouds by the minute. "It better not rain again!" he grumbled nasally. Bushroot stood several feet to the left of Megavolt, his hands wringing together in front of him and looking both nervous and sullen.

Negaduck ignored the jester's glee and Liquidator's comment, his eyes searching out the resident mutant plant duck. "Bushy, you know what to do" he ordered. "The lock might be broken now but the metallic door still needs some work." He then added darkly, "This is what I get for trying to steal from a S.H.U.S.H. protected laboratory. Gotta have high quality doors even on the rooftop!"

Without a pause, Bushroot walked up to the door, analyzing it carefully. He then looked down at the rooftop below his rooted feet. "Hmmm..." he said quietly. He brought out a brown sack and tossed a fair amount of seeds in front of the door. "Come on, my darlings. Reach for the sky! Show me what you've got!"

Immediately after saying these words and after a few gestures towards the sky with his arms, the small seeds started to sprout. They started out small, but then began to grow enormously. They crept on the wall of the doorway and towards the door knob, sliding in through the tight cracks of the sealed entryway. Several moments past before the wall around the door began to crack and break under the pressure of the plants. Suddenly, the large metallic door fell in towards the stairway inside.

"Impressive. You managed to do something right for once, Bushy" scoffed Negaduck with a wave of his hand. Bushroot just frowned in reply.

Clearing his throat, Negaduck stood before them and announced, "It's like this boys, we get the machine by sneaking into this door, which leads through the stairway. Liquidator!" At the call of his name, the ex-salesman looked up in earnest, his dog ears perking up. Seeing he had the canine's attention, Negaduck continued." As I told you back at the hideout, I want you to cover all the pipes, and be sure to watch out for Dipwing Dork. He's bound to-"

Negaduck was cut off by a large puff of thick purple smoke. All the villains, minus Liquidator, began to cough heavily. Negaduck stumbled away from the door in an attempt to clear his nose from the smoke. Due to this, a certain masked vigilante managed to get between him and the doorway.

"I am the terror that flaps in the night" said a voice. Negaduck rolled his eyes and grit his teeth in anger. "I am the burnt toast you had this morning! I -" The blue smoke vanished to reveal the purple-caped hero. "Am DARKWIIIIIIIIIING DUCK!"

With a half lidded sneer, Negaduck said, "Wow, I'm impressed. You haven't tripped or fell flat on your face yet."

"Ooohhh! Mr. Banana Brain and I wager this is gonna be fun! That purple-caped party-crasher is gonna be fun to crush!" giggled Quackerjack.

Megavolt smiled and rubbed his hands together. Sparks of electricity shot between the gloved hands. "Maybe he'd like to feel the power of electricity as it fries his brain! Heh heh heh!"

"Not tonight, boys!" cried Darkwing. "Suck gas evil doers!" He brought out his gas gun as he said these words.

"Unable to have a good robbery without hassle? Are you constantly bothered by purple cloaked pests? That's okay! Drown it away!" called over Liquidator, moving towards Darkwing threateningly.

Negaduck sighed and looked away, agitated. "Why don't you get it through you thick skull, Dipwing? We Five will always overpower you" With this, he gave Darkwing a great shove in his rib cage, sending Darkwing pummeling to the wet cement of the roof. His cape went over his hat and face.

By the time Darkwing removed his cape from his line of sight, the Fearsome Five had already managed to get through the doorway he had been trying to protect. He noted that Negaduck was no where in sight.

"Drat!" sneered Darkwing. He pushed himself up off the cement and glanced over to see that Quackerjack and Bushroot where still standing there to the side of the door, as though they were guarding it. They were both watching him closely.

Bushroot stepped forward. "Maybe Darkwing would like to play a game, Quackerjack." he suggested in his baritone voice. He looked over to his jester companion. "How about if you show him a game he can play?"

Quackerjack seemed thrilled at this notion, his eyes lighting up with glee and the bells at the end of his hat jingled. "Ooh! Yes! That would be fun!" The jester clapped his hands and bounced on his feet for a moment. He then brought out from behind his back a teddy bear, or at least, what appeared to be a teddy bear. Experience with the villain allowed Darkwing to know that his toys were never a good sign for any of Quackerjack's foes and always meant getting hurt in some way or another.

Just as Quackerjack was about to throw the teddy bear at him, the clown cried out in pain and shock as someone tugged hard on his jester hat, tugging hard at his head. "OWW! Hey! No fair! No fair!" Quackerjack frantically tried to free himself from the hold with his long nimble fingers.

Darkwing grinned to see his large sidekick, Launchpad, behind the two villains, taking the teddy bear and tossing it aside. "Nice one, LP!" Both of them ignored the small explosion where the teddy bear had landed when Launchpad tossed it.

The pilot shrugged modestly. "Just doing my job, DW!"

Bushroot was now trembling in worry and fear as he watched the heroes get the better of his fellow convict. The green villain never seemed to have a backbone in these situations, if he ever had one at all. Unbeknownst to him, a small red headed figure appeared out from behind him.

"Yeah!" shouted Gosalyn as she stepped beside Darkwing and placed her hands on her hips. "You boys are asking for trouble!"

Quackerjack, still being held by his hat, gave a snicker. He reached into his pocket and brought out a handful of little toy robots. He let them loose and they all clattered to the cement before buzzing with life. With little whirling sounds, they started advancing on Launchpad, who cried out in alarm. The pilot's grip on Quackerjack's hat loosened and the jester took his chance to spring free and dive in towards the stairway Negaduck and the others had taken.

The robots turned their attention on Darkwing and Gosalyn next. Father and daughter began whacking at the robots with their webbed feet and causing the toys to fall on their sides and become immobile.

Darkwing didn't waste a second in pursuing the colorful clown, knowing Gosalyn and Launchpad could handle Bushroot. "You guys handle, Bushy, I'll get Negaduck and the others!" he called behind him.

Bushroot was about to follow after the others when he heard a grunt of alarm from Gosalyn. He looked over to see that all the little robots had managed to right them up and combine themselves all into one large menacing robot. With all of them together, the robots were able to shoot out little sparks of electricity at the young mallard.

The same thing had happened to the robots that had been chasing Launchpad. More sparks of electricity were being shot out from both of the now large robots.

Bushroot couldn't help but ponder just how many of those robots had Quackerjack let loose.

Gosalyn tried stepping away from the robot as it got closer and closer, driving her further and further towards the edge of the building. Then, as Gosalyn took another step back, she lost her balance. She hadn't realized how close to the edge she had been. Gosalyn looked down to see she was going to fall. She screamed as she instinctively tried grabbing onto the ledge, but the cement was slick and she missed her chance.

"NOOO!" cried someone's voice.

It happened so fast that by the time Launchpad had managed to defeat the robot and turn to Gosalyn, Bushroot was already at the edge of the building. Safely in his thin vine-like arms was a a panting and shocked Gosalyn being held under his arms.

Bushroot turned around just in time for Launchpad to come up and grab her, holding her close. Gosalyn normally wouldn't allow herself to be handled in such a way, but the shock of her near death experience had left her too stunned to fully function.

The tension that filled the air afterwards was thick enough to be cut with a knife. Bushroot awkwardly stood there wrapping his arms around himself and moving his gaze down to the cement.

Gosalyn was the first to speak after she wriggled out of Launchpad's arms. "Y-You...saved me..." Her voice was a coarse whisper.

Bushroot didn't reply at first. He seemed nervous and unsure of what to say. "I couldn't just let you fall..." he finally said quietly.

Gosalyn stepped closer to the mutant plant duck. "But... we're enemies."

Bushroot frowned, looking away with a shrug. "So? That doesn't mean I want to see you fall..." He was answering in such a small voice, but they heard him perfectly, as though he were shouting it. They stared at him, not believing their ears.

Was Bushroot, a member of the Fearsome Five, really saying these words?

Silence filled the air for a what seemed like ages, until a great amount of blue smoke started coming out of the stairway door and a victorious cry from Negaduck was heard. Launchpad went to see if the vigilante needed help. Gosalyn followed, but not until another long stare at Bushroot, who was standing there staring into space.

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	2. Chapter 2

Deepening Roots - Revised Chapter 2, a darkwing duck fanfic

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Characters are not mine.

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Though Darkwing had not been able to stop Negaduck or any other members of the Fearsome Five from escaping capture, that did not dampen the shorter mallard's ego in the slightest as they returned to Audoben Bay Tower for the night. The vigilante had managed to stop the villains from taking off with the machine they had been trying to steal. Now the machine was being guarded with heavier security to prevent it from being stolen in the future.

"Ha!" exclaimed Darkwing as he flipped back his cape for a dramatic effect. "Did you see those five cowards run? I slithered through the very shadows they fear at night! I became one with the scenery and pounced on them like the panther of Justice! They know by now not to mess with Darkwing Duck for he will always pounce and trounce of their foul plans!" He was currently speaking in monologue to anyone who would listen as Launchpad put away the Ratcatcher for the night.

"Heh, sorry to interrupt your descriptions on how you act like a cat, there DW, but if it hadn't been for me your head would have been plastered to the wall right about now, courtesy of Negaduck!" spoke Launchpad, his voice echoing slightly since his head and shoulders were currently underneath the Ratcatcher as he tuned it up.

Darkwing walked up to stand next to Launchpad and made a face, a low grumble escaping his beak. "Yeah, well, that's what I wanted you to think! I had Negaduck right where I wanted him!"

Leaving her silent perch on the stairs that led to the upper floors, Gosalyn walked up to her egotistical father. She had been staring down over the city ever since they got back. "Yeah, and while that was happening, Bushroot saved my life!" she said quickly.

Darkwing smiled at her fondly before doing a double take. He looked at her as though she had six arms instead of two. "Wait, whaaaat!? When did THIS happen!?"

Launchpad pulled himself out from underneath the Ratcatcher, knowing Darkwing would want his input on the subject as well as his daughter's.

Gosalyn sighed. Then, in the most honest and sincerest voice she could manage so she could help prove she wasn't lying, she began telling the story of how Bushroot had managed to save her from falling off the roof while Darkwing had been busy dealing with the other four members of the Fearsome Five. At the end of the story, Darkwing was pacing, his hand rubbing his chin in deep thought.

Gosalyn and Launchpad waited for Darkwing to voice his opinion over the occurrence. The pilot and young duckling shared a look, knowing this bit of news wouldn't settle with the masked hero very well.

When her father finally did speak, Gosalyn truly wished he had not. Why did he have to be so stubborn?

"No." stated Darkwing as he stopped his pacing to look at them. He shook his head. "It's not true. I mean- It IS true, but that's not what really happened. I'm sure of it! He's a villain, Gos! I'm sure he did it for some other reason. He didn't do it just because 'he didn't want to.'" The hero said this last bit in air quotes.

This only irritated Gosalyn further as she crossed her arms, tapped her webbed foot on the cement floor, and glared at him. "Why won't you believe what I'm telling you!?" she demanded to know, her voice higher than usual.

Darkwing regarded her carefully before answering. His expression then softened and he heaved a long sigh. "Gosalyn, why does it even matter? He's a villain. Yeah, sure, he saved you're life. Fine. I'll admit that, but it means nothing! It doesn't change all the wrongs he's committed over his years as a convict. It doesn't take any of that back" he defended his case.

Launchpad raised a hand and stepped forward; shaking his head. "I don't think that's true, DW. You didn't see the look on his face! And come to think of it, Bushroot never really does anything. He's never participated in the crimes the Fearsome Five commit together as much as the others do. He's usually just tagging along by the looks of it. And whenever the action gets too close, then he just uses his plant powers as more defense than anything else! He really doesn't do much to hurt any of us. And tonight, he saved Gosalyn!" argued Launchpad.

Darkwing looking between the two of them, realizing that no matter what he said, the two of them would argue against his case. He grunted before crossing his own arms and looking away. "Fine! Believe what you want! But I'm sticking to my opinion! Bushroot is an evil villain with no intentions for good and that is that!"

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"YOU KNOBS!" Negaduck screamed at the top of his lungs. Quackerjack, Megavolt, Bushroot, and Liquidator had all huddled themselves back into a corner in their current hideout, which was an old abandoned newspaper factory on the outskirts of western St. Canard. They knew how pissed off and volatile Negaduck was and none of them wanted to be on the receiving end. Thankfully the crime leader had left shortly after in a fit of rage.

The villains were relaxing, having been told to lie low until Negaduck's next plan. The yellow suited villain had not stayed long, mumbling something about being with idiots. Not that any of them wanted to spend a whole lot of time with the homicidal mallard.

Quackerjack and Megavolt were off in the corner of the large hideout, tinkering with something that looked like a strange television remote. The two of them continuously argued over what they wanted to do with it. Neither Bushroot or Liquidator could understand them, nor did they try to.

The resident mutants were on the couch, more to themselves. Bushroot's face was void of emotion as he sat there, his mind replaying the incident on the rooftop over and over. He pulled back and laid into the couch, running a leafy hand through his foliage.

A moment later, liquid arms fell on Bushroot's shoulders. His eyes wide, Bushroot looked up to see that Liquidator had stood up and was now standing behind the couch, looking down on him. "Feeling down? Feeling unloved? Come be with the Liquidator!"

Bushroot gave a half smile. "Hi, Buddy" he said softly. "I'm okay. Really! I've just been tired is all." He felt himself blush when Liquidator gave him a small kiss on the cheek.

"Tired!?" screeched an eavesdropping Quackerjack. The jester was currently hopping up and down on his pogo stick, clearly having gotten bored with the project he and Megavolt had been working on over in the corner. "More like half dead!" He giggled insanely.

"Wait, who's half dead?!" squeaked a confused Megavolt as he walked up behind Quackerjack.

Quackerjack giggled at his confusion. "Bush Brain is! His petals are singed, his goose is half cooked, and we're having steamed vegetables for dinner tonight!"

"Wait, we're having goose for dinner?"

Liquidator gurgled a chuckle. He brought out his arms towards Megavolt as though he was on display to be sold. "St. Canard's menacing Megavolt, everybody! If he threatens to kill you, change the topic, and he'll forget why he's there!"

Megavolt growled in annoyance.

Bushroot sighed and looked away from where he was still sitting on the couch, hating being the center of attention. "What do any of you know about it!? So I've been having a few off days! Like you've all never had 'off days' before!" retorted Bushroot heatedly.

Quackerjack and Megavolt both scoffed at him, neither caring enough to continue in the argument. Quackerjack bounced over to Megavolt, whispering something in the rodent's ear. Bushroot watched curiously as Megavolt's cheeks slowly turned pink. He looked away as liquid arms wrapped themselves around his thin shoulders.

"Are you sure everything is okay? You seem more stressed out tonight than usual" commented Liquidator is a quiet concerned voice.

Bushroot craned his head back to look Liquidator in the face, his cheeks heating up in a blush. Liquidator was the closest friend he had. The two of them had been dating for a while now and he loved Liquidator dearly, though there were times when he wondered what the liquid canine saw in him. He also found it very hard to lie to Liquidator but he also knew he wouldn't be able to share this particular problem with him.

Saving Gosalyn from falling off the roof was slowly eating away at the mutant plant duck. He didn't know why he had done it. It was certainly not very villainous of him. Perhaps that was the problem right there. Was he really a criminal?

Liquidator's voice cut through his thoughts. "Need someone to confide in? Need to get something off your chest? Come to the Liquidator! Free of charge!" Liquidator then placed his chin on the mutant's shoulder. He added slyly, "But it's free only for a certain mutant plant duck." Bushroot shivered at the sensation of the intimate moment. Just touching Liquidator gave him pleasure, only because the plant side of him screamed for the H2O that was the dog's body.

He closed his eyes, enjoying the moment. He then remembered why he was so anxious.

Bushroot shrugged him off, stepping out of his arms by standing up from the couch. "Thanks. But I think I had best get home. My plants will want to know where I am..." Liquidator placed his hands on his hips, concerned as he watched the floral mallard leave.

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An eerie wind whipped its way around the city in the darkened night as the stars illuminated the sky, shining their light down upon the earth. The wind whipped around, howling at the moonlit sky, stirring up the trees and their branches full of changing leaves.

On the outskirts of the city lay a greenhouse, where Reginald Bushroot had just arrived. He was physically and mentally drained. The petals on his head drooped as his thin body begged for rest. He didn't understand at all as to why he was so exhausted. Was it simply the weather? Did he not water himself enough today? Or, a little voice spoke in his mind, was it because he saved that little girl and now he was depressed because of what it implied?

Yes. If he was honest with himself, he knew that was the real problem. His mind raced every time he thought of it. Why? Why was it that big of a deal to him? Why did he care?

So many similar questions troubled his mind as he walked into his greenhouse, pushing the glass front door in and stepping through the threshold on tired roots. Spike yipped like a dog at his heels, happy that his master has returned home.

Once he was inside, Bushroot stopped and blankly looked around at his greenhouse. Bushroot couldn't help but smile. This was his sanctuary. He always felt more whole whenever he was in the safe warm confines of his Greenhouse. He regarded all the flora and fauna around him. He loved his plants dearly. He didn't know what he would do if it was not for his plants.

He could hear them. Indistinct whispers that always spoke deep in the back of his mind whenever he was around any sort of plant. The plants of his Greenhouse were currently all talking among themselves. They were overjoyed to see him back home.

Many plants, mainly the larger trees, always had been concerned for their master's welfare.

Walking deeper and deeper into the greenhouse, he soon came upon his bed, which consisted of a overly large plant pot with a large amount of potting soil inside of it. This was his favorite place to sleep.

"Oi...I really must stop all this crime stuff. It always puts me of edge. It leaves me feeling guilty and sad and I've already got enough problems..." he started talking to himself. He placed a leafy hand on his forehead. "Order after order from Negaduck, being told to do this and that..." During his quiet ramblings, Bushroot did not notice the bushes and trees surrounding him begin to shiver. It looked as though it was just the wind, but to someone as attuned to plants as Bushroot, it looked as though the plants were trembling in anger. The mutant continued his ramblings, oblivious to the rage building up in his friends. "Being chased by weedkiller and weed shredders..." The shivering of the plants increased, yet their master continued walking to his bed, deep in his own thoughts. "And then tonight I go and save that little girl. And I don't even know why!"

He collapsed on the soil of his bed, placing his head down on a small shrub that welcomed him with open branches. Moaning as he found a comfortable spot Bushroot groaned, "It's never bothered me before. So, why does it bother me now?"

His question went unanswered.

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	3. Chapter 3

Deepening Roots - Revised Chapter 3, a darkwing duck fanfic

Chapter 3

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The plants were whispering to each other.

Whispers.

Did you hear?

Did you hear?

Did you hear?

The Master is upset.

Doesn't surprise me. I knew it would happen.

But why now? He's been so happy.

Don't know, but we must fix his anguish.

Yes, we cannot allow him to suffer.!

You're right. But what can we do?

Simple. We rebel.

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For the next several days, the city of St. Canard was quiet and peaceful. Though that didn't keep crime from happening. Crime never slept. But neither the Fearsome Five or F.O.W.L. were behind any of these crimes.

'"No" thought Darkwing in annoyance to himself. "Just your simple punk kids and gangsters. Nothing too serious, considering what I've dealt with in the past. However, every good super hero is constantly on the look out! Lurking the shadows and ready at all time for at any moment, disaster could strike! But either way, I, Darkwing Duck, will be prepared for anything, even on a quiet night as this!"

"Uh, DW, you realize you're talking to yourself again, right?" came the voice of Launchpad, which pierced through Darkwing's thoughts.

The two of them were currently cruising along on the road, Launchpad on the seat beside him.

Darkwing blinked as he came back to reality. He put a little bit more speed on the Ratcatcher as he replied, "Uhhh- Nonsense, LP! I was talking to you!"

The tall pilot beside him didn't look at all convinced. "Uh...If you say so, DW."

Darkwing was about to say something more when they both heard it.

A scream.

This caught them both by surprise, causing Darkwing to slam on the brakes with wide eyes. Launchpad grabbed tightly to the rail in front of him. "Whoa there, DW! You're gonna have to work on your stops!"

Darkwing ignored his friend's jibe on his driving skills and looked up at the building in front of them. It was an old apartment building. A woman had screamed from somewhere inside the building. Sensing trouble, Darkwing immediately wanted to go and check things out. He turned to Launchpad.

"Did you not hear that, Launchpad?" he asked dubiously. "Someone screamed."

"Yeah, I heard it DW, but that stop of yours...whew-" Launchpad went on, shaking his head. He leaned over the side of the Ratcatcher in order to check on the wheels which were smoking ever so slightly.

"Forget the screeching halt I made!" Darkwing snapped, angrily closing his eyes before opening them to glare at his sidekick. He pointed to where they heard the screams. "That's not important! Someone up there needs our help!"

Launchpad finally looked up at the building, realizing the importance of the issue. "Gee! How are we supposed to know which apartment it came from? There must be over a hundred apartments in that building!"

Darkwing didn't reply at first. He was too busy staring intently at the windows of the building. He was looking for any tiny tangible clue.

There! He saw it!

"Launchpad!" he exclaimed, grabbing his sidekick by the sleeve. He pointed at one of the windows on the third floor. "Do you see that!?"

"See what?" asked the pilot as he squinted.

"That root on the side of the building! It looks to be coming out from that window! That must be where the scream came from!"

Launchpad titled his head to the side. "Uh, I'm not followin' DW. What does a root have to with anything? That's probably from someone's house plant that's too close to the window. Why would that make a person scream? Unless of course they have a phobia for plant roots."

Darkwing sighed at his friend's slowness. "Who do we know can control plants and allow them to do every whim and desire he wishes?" Launchpad appeared to be thinking hard on that question and after several moments, he still hadn't replied. This caused Darkwing to snap once more. "Bushroot!"

Launchpad's eyes went wide. "Oh! Of course! Bushroot!"

Darkwing shook his head. He looked back down to the road in front of them and revved up the Ratcatcher. "Come along, LP! We're gonna check this out!"

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Getting into the apartment room where the root was coming from was very easy for the terror of the night. He knocked on the door of the apartment, glaring back at Launchpad who had reminded him to knock in the first place. Had he been by himself, he wouldn't have bothered!

"Crime fighters such as myself do NOT knock!" he had grumbled.

"But ya can't just burst into a person's apartment!" the pilot had argued.

After a short spat, Launchpad had won the argument.

There was no response, making Darkwing cry out in victory. "HA! See!? I'll bet this isn't even someone's home, LP!"

Then the sound of someone unlocking the door reached their ears and Darkwing winced at his error. Launchpad was kind enough not to say anything.

The door slowly opened to reveal a thin red headed duck who looked as though she hadn't been able to sleep for days. Her long red hair was unkempt and there were bags under her eyes. She took one glance at Darkwing and closed her eyes, sighing. It was as though she had been expecting a monster to be waiting on the other side instead.

"Evening, citizen...Er...Ma'am..." greeted Darkwing awkwardly as he pushed his way inside. He didn't wait to be asked in. He wanted to find some answers. "I'm so sorry to intrude but several minutes ago we heard the sound of someone screaming." He turned to face the woman still at the door. She was looking at Launchpad with wide eyes as he stepped in. Darkwing could tell she was slightly intimidated by Launchpad's height and build. "Was it you who screamed?"

The woman got out of her daze and turned her head towards Darkwing, shutting the door behind the pilot after a brief moment of taking in how tall he was. She herself was only a few inches than Darkwing. "Y-Yes, that was me." She paused a moment before speaking again. "Are you Darkwing Duck...?"

Darkwing seemed flattered that she knew who he was as he sauntered up to her with his chest puffed out. With a smug look he said, "Yes, that is me! Relax, for I am here to help you! I would like to know what caused you to scream, my dear."

He turned away from her and started searching the apartment with his magnifying glass.

The woman placed a hand over her chest, clearly flustered by all his bravado."Yes, I screamed" she began feebly. "It was over there on the window sill when it happened." She walked over from the front door and showed him the window in the main living room. Darkwing quickly walked over cautiously, his eyes scanning everything.

The woman side stepped him as he searched for clues and walked over to the window. There, sitting on the window sill sat an over-sized pot of roses. The plant itself was enormous; looking to be three times the normal size for a rose plant. The very top leaf grazed the ceiling slightly.

Darkwing inspected it with his magnifying glass before taking the large pot into his hands and analyzing it. Leaving it on the table itself, he twisted the pot back and forth.

It was Launchpad who broke the silence. "So, um, this plant was what made you scream?"

Darkwing looked up at her when he heard this question, wanting to know the same thing.

"Well-" she trembled. "It's not the plant itself that bothered me. It's what the plant was DOING that scared me."

Darkwing cocked an eyebrow. "What do you mean? What did this plant do?"

"It grew twice it's size within seconds!" squeaked the woman as she fiddled nervously with her hair. "I watched it happen! I was so startled, I screamed! It's been twitching a lot the last few days, like there was a breeze blowing in but there was none and suddenly it grew today to the size it is now! I've been struggling to sleep cause I didn't know what was going on!"

"I can see why you screamed. That would be a startling sight." Darkwing reassured her. He placed the pot back down. " Well, anyways, ma'am, as sad as I am to say this, there really is nothing I can do about this." He pulled the vine of leaves out from where it was hanging out the window. "However, I do suggest that you rid yourself of this plant in case anything else is to happen. In fact, I can even take it off your hands for you!"

The red head nodded eagerly. "Yes! Please and thank you!"

The masked hero went to pick up the potted flower, but his eyes practically bulged out of his head when he felt the weight of it. He gasped. He stared at the red pot in shock. "Boy! That's one heavy flower!" His eyes instantly sought out Launchpad. "Eh, not that I can't lift this-I mean, I am quite strong, but perhaps my sidekick Launchpad would like the honors!"

Launchpad rolled his eyes with a small smile, taking his cue. He moved over and tried to lift the plant himself, barely able to. Launchpad nearly dropped it once it was in his arms. "Woo! Next time you might wanna cut back on the fertilizer and water, lady!"

Darkwing nodded to Launchpad, signaling him to leave. The pilot, now with an annoyed and concentrated frown on his face, headed for the door. As they reached the threshold, Darkwing swirled around to hand her a card. "If you have any other problems, please contact me as soon as possible and I will help you in any small way possible."

The woman seemed greatly relieved to see them leave as she shut the door on them.

Not until the two were outside the apartment building once more did Launchpad finally speak up. "That's it? That's all you're going to do?" He grunted as he tried to shift the heavy pot into an easier position in his arms.

Darkwing looked up at at his sidekick with a shrug. "That's all I can do, Launchpad. At least until something more takes place to find more clues. For now, I can examine this plant and see if there is anything different about it."

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There had been no traces of anything special about the plant when Darkwing had studied it. Which baffled him even more. To make the mysterious plot thicken even more, Darkwing had been swarmed with cases similar to the one at the woman's apartment.

More and more citizens of the city complained about their houseplants and the grass in their yards growing at an alarming rate. Sometimes getting to the point where they reach the ceiling and poke holes through the plaster. The most shocking and serious part of this, is that on occasion, the plants would thrash about, as though attacking their owners.

The trees were the largest problems. Saplings grew at enormous speed and the already large and old trees wracked their branches about, making it a hazard to walk near them.

Darkwing was furious. He desperately wanted to know what was going on. Yet the problem that made him most outraged was that besides the problem involving plants, he had no evidence what-so-ever that this was Bushroot's doing. Though he desperately wanted to go and knock down the plant villain's door and demand to know what was happening. However, Launchpad and Gosalyn were both the voice of reason in saying that besides the plants growing at alarming rates, there was no actual crime taking place.

That was the most confusing part of the mystery for the vigilante.

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The sun crept through the windows of the large greenhouse as the sun rose for the day. The flowers, trees, shrubs, and blades of grass enjoyed the feeling of warmth, yet the joy they felt was lost when they saw that Bushroot was still sleeping in his flower pot in a deep slumber.

For the last three days that was what he'd been doing. It seemed to him that no matter how much sleep he got, he still woke up exhausted. Negaduck had told him to meet him the next day after the robbery of the science building, and yes, he had shown up. But it all appeared to be a blur to him.

Liquidator had made several concerned comments about how out of it his paramour had been looking lately, but Bushroot simply brushed off his comments. He loved Liquidator to pieces; he was the one source of light in his life. But for reasons Bushroot wasn't even sure of, he didn't want to be around the other mutant right now. Buddy was amazing and treated him like he was a prized tomato plant in a garden show. Always stealing the best fertilizer for him. Always helping him improve and fix up his Greenhouse. Not to mention the way Liquidator made the floral duck feel whenever they had their more intimate moments. However, as of late, none of that seemed to matter.

Back in the present, Bushroot rolled over in his spot and mumbled something about giant potatoes as he drifted back to sleep. His soft snores were once again piercing the silence of the greenhouse. Spike, his over-protective, dog-like, Venus Fly Trap yipped at him, wanting attention. He nudged his large fly trap snout at Bushroot's leafy hands which hung loosely to the side of the pot.

He wanted to go outside, but he was only allowed to do so when his master was with him. Getting anxious and impatient, Spike took a bite of Bushroot's purple foliage and started tugging.

After the fifth quick pull Bushroot began to moan. "Hmmp...Stop it..." he began to whimper. His hand reached up and grabbed the section that was being pulled. "Stop! That hurts!" He was still half asleep but the tugging was getting worse. Forcing his aching body to move, he sat up, releasing his foliage from Spike's mouth. He rubbed the sore spot as he yawned. He then watched as Spike spat out a few of his master's purple petals that had been plucked out from his mouth.

"Golly, Spike! Why'd you have to go and do that!? No more fertilizer before bed time for you!" he grumbled. He opened his eyes to a bright greenhouse. Looking up at the sun shining through the glass ceiling, he gave a small smile as he rubbed at his eyes and stretched."Wow! What a nice day out there! the sky is so bright and clear! Feel that sun!" He closed his eyes and soaked up the nutritious rays of sunlight.

Spike yipped next to his bed. Yawning, Bushroot finally stood and stepped down and out of his pot of soil, giving the shrub he had used for a pillow a quick mumble of thanks after gently brushing over the shrub's leaves. The little shrub shivered happily at the praise.

He started heading for the door of the greenhouse, staring sleepily at the ground as Spike ran around him happily. As he passed some of fauna around him, he stopped and froze. He listened.

You're awake, master!

You woke up! We've been worried!

Dandren will be so thrilled!

Similar greetings and praises were heard. He slowly looked up at the living things he called his children and received a shock.

Everything in the entire greenhouse was twice its original size. Each and every plant had grown enormously and without the aide Bushroot's powers. Shocked, Bushroot began rushing over to several of his children. He wanted answers!

"W-What is this!? What's happening!?" he asked a peach tree, grabbing it around its trunk and giving it a hug. He looked up at the tree's branches and continued asking. "I don't understand! How could this be? I didn't sleep walk in my sleep again did I!?" He gasped as he spoke to himself in his panic. "Ack! Or worse! I didn't sleep-experiment in my sleep again, did I? It was a disaster the last time that happened! I'll bet I did! I'll bet it was the growing formula I was working on!" The mutant scientist would have continued his frantic rambling had the voices of the plants not gotten louder in his head as they tried to get his attention.

'No testing!' replied a voice in Bushroot's mind.

We did this!

Yes, we did this!

We grew so that we could help you!

You were so unhappy the other night!

You still are. We only wish to make you feel better, Master

Bushroot's eyes widened, the stamens on his head jolting upward in surprise. "Master?"

You don't know?

Ever since you became like us, we've seen you as our master!

Our savior for happiness

Each plant seemed to be putting their own input. But he heard these main voices more clearly. He realized they were all trees who were talking to him. Bushroot stepped back from the peach tree and looked around him, suddenly feeling trapped. He didn't understand why. They were his children! His friends! He loved them and they loved him! So, why did he suddenly feel trapped?

"I suppose I did know that. I just never gave it much thought..." he trailed off in wonder.

He wrapped his arms around himself, listening to what his children had to say. They continued chattering away happily. Most of them repeating what was already said while others continued to tell him how they understand his confusion and that it was alright with them.

Then, a single voice was heard. It was a deep voice. One that Bushroot recognized immediately. It was a large oak tree which stood in the far reaches of the greenhouse. It was the oldest and wisest plant in the entire Greenhouse. Bushroot had asked the oak for help and opinions time and time again.

There was a certain place in Bushroot's Greenhouse that always made him feel completely safe. Yes, his entire Greenhouse made him feel at home and welcome, for all of this plant friends were there, but there was one place in particular that made him feel even better.

It was in the back of the Greenhouse. He walked his way through the paths of his Greenhouse, stopping every now and then to talk to a flower or bush, but he finally made his way through. There was an opening where a single large tree stood, waiting for its master. The tree was the largest tree in the entire Greenhouse. Its thick trunk and intimidating branches would make anyone scared of it, but to Bushroot, it was home.

Bushroot smiled up at his favorite tree, the tree he always came to when he had trouble.

Dandren.

Dandren had been with Bushroot since before the mutation. He had found Dandren at a local store, desperately in need of a home. He had dubbed Dandren with his name and started confiding in him ever since his telepathy with plants started. Now was no exception.

He sat down in front of the large tree, leaning his head and shoulders against the bark.

"Oh, good grief, Dandren! Everyone is all hyped up today! What is WITH you guys?"

'Everyone is excited that you have finally woken up. You've been so sad lately, master' came Dandren's reply.

Dandren's thoughts had always been slightly more advanced than the other plants in his Greenhouse. Bushroot wasn't too sure why, but he suspected it had something to do with the tree's age and closeness to him. Perhaps because Dandren was the oldest plant int eh Greenhouse?

Bushroot looked up at the tree's branches in thought. "No more depressed than usual, I assure still! Why all the theatrics?! And how did you all grow so fast without my help!? I either have to use a formula on you all or use my plant powers!"

'It is our way of supporting you, master. We wish to grow stronger that you can rely on us when you need us! You have not been in the mood to experiment so we worked extra hard to grow strong so you don't have to!"

"Golly, that's awful nice of you all! But you didn't have to do that! You all support me just fine the way you are! But you're right though. I haven't been in the mood for much of anything lately. I've been brushing Buddy off and ignoring my projects. Nothing interests me" He then took in a deep breath and said, "Ooh...Dandren! Everyone wants something from me or expects me to act a certain way and I'm tired of it! I just wish everyone would go away!"

'Even the one made of H2O? He is fond of you. '

Bushroot blinked. "Liquidator? Yeah, he's really the only one I enjoy having around. But he can be so unpredictable sometimes. I don't always know what he's thinking and that worries me! I don't know. I just worry that despite how good he treats me: I'm not good enough for him! What if he wakes up one day and realizes he doesn't want to be dating a vegetable from the compost heap?!"

'Nonsense, master! He is lucky to have you!'

"I just wish everyone saw me the way you and Buddy do..."sighed the mutant.

'Master...I wish there was something I could do to take your pain away...Do not listen to them, master. They don't know what they speak of. They are unable to see your worth...'

Bushroot nodded. "I know, Dandren. It seems as though you are the only one who understands me..." There was loud roar of voices only Bushroot could hear as all the plants around him disagreed. They cried for him. "Ohh! I know all of you are here for me too! I didn't mean any offense!" he soothed to them, looking out and around his Greenhouse.

'I am always here for you, master'

"I know Dandren. And I appreciate it." He stretched, feeling the days events on himself. He actually hadn't done all that much until just several hours ago. He had woken up late, watered his plants, taken Spike out for a walk, and fiddled with some of his latest research. A typical day for Bushroot. But then Negaduck had called them all in for a meeting, which led them to the rooftop. Bushroot debated on whether or not he wanted to take a nap when Dandren continued speaking.

'The world has been extra cruel to you lately. We of the plant world cannot simply sit by and allow you to suffer such anguish' said Dandren.

Bushroot turned around and looked at the tree, its large thick branches looking old and wise to the mutant duck. "What are you saying?" asked Bushroot.

'I am saying...We are rebelling. Fighting back against the world and teaching those terrible humans a lesson'

Bushroot frowned, not caring for the sound of this plan. "No..." he started quietly. Then, his panic rose as he the realization of everything hit. "NO! Please don't! You'll all get hurt! And it will be my fault! No! You don't have to do this! I'm fine, really! I've lived my whole life being treated badly, I'm used to it! I don't need them, I have all of you and I have Buddy! You guys are all I need!" Bushroot tried convincing his children. Dandren's voice came back to him.

'You continue to tell yourself that, but look at yourself. You have been asleep from depression for three days and in the time you were awake you in a daze of wariness. You even just said that the one of H2O makes you feel uncertain at times. We love you dearly and refuse to let this continue'

Bushroot began to panic. He twirled around in his spot, looking from tree to tree; flower to flower. "B-But you won't solve anything! Afterwards-After you've 'rebelled' everyone will still blame and hate me!"

Why do you not like this plan, master?

We only wish to help you

We'll make them all pay

Yes, please, we want to help you. No matter what you say

Feeling defeated, Bushroot sighed, slouching. "I just don't want any of you getting hurt because of me..."

Dandren's voice came into his mind once more, this time, it held more defiance and determination.

'No matter what you say, master, we will rebel and make those humans pay. Everyone will regret the day they shunned and treated Reginald Bushroot terribly.'

The scientist's mouth opened in shock, not knowing what else to say to that. Bushroot then heard a cry of enthused voices and looked around to see all the plants giving a gentle shiver, proving their excitement.

It seemed that even a mutant plant with the ability to control plants could stop this world of angry plants.

There was a loud crunching sound as Dandren began uprooting his roots, startling Bushroot. He stared at the tree with wide eyes. He had never seen a tree move without his help. Dandren thumped his way over to Bushroot and reached down to collect the mutant plant duck with his many branches. Bushroot was placed as gently as possible on one of Dandren's thicker branches; making sure he was safe.

'Come, master. We have much work to do.'

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	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

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Stress has never a feeling Reginald Bushroot was good at handling. As he sat on the swaying branches of the old oak tree known as Dandren, he clutched his head in turmoil, his leafy hands fiddling through his petals.

He didn't understand. His beloved plants had never disobeyed him before. Why were they suddenly going against his wishes now, of all times?

Dandren, who was currently tromping his large tree trunk and roots around the yard surrounding the greenhouse, had told him that they would wait for the best moment to begin their fight against St. Canard and its citizens.

The main reason for not having started yet was simple. He first wanted his master to be happy with the idea and supportive of their plans. He did not understand why their little sapling master was not thrilled at their idea.

Still clutching his head, Bushroot was tittering and mumbling. Dandren tried to understand what he was saying through their telepathy, but his master's mind seemed to be closed off at the moment due to all the turmoil he was feeling.

"I don't want to do this!" Bushroot suddenly exclaimed. "I can see why you would want to,but -It's not right! This isn't the way I ever wanted anything to go! I was once a regular duck who wanted nothing but world peace! I was trying to solve world hunger for Pete's sake! Please, no-We can't just-" his soft moans filled the absence of his speech as he breathed. Bushroot curled up into a ball, his root-like feet wrapping around his wooded legs. "I don't-" he began before cutting himself off. The panic and worry was making it hard for him to make out full sentences. "You'll all get-" Bushroot was like this for several more minutes before he finally stopped.

His head dropped as he lowered his hands, the groaning and mumbling absent. Dandren stopped walking, wanting to know his master's decision.

"I can't do this!" he sighed. "I saved her. I saved that little red head and I now know why. " Bushroot raised his head and looked out through Dandren's branches. "I'm not an evil person. It's as simple as that! I mean, I'm all for one or two petty crimes every now and then to get some better fertilizer for you guys. But taking over the world? Intentionally hurting people? NO! I can't do that! So, I can't be an evil person: a true villain! I can't be...Can I? I mean, had it been Megavolt left with her on that roof, or Quakerjack, they would have just let her fall! And if not, they wouldn't be nearly as worried about it than me! But I was unable to! Does that mean I'm not an evil person?"

Dandren had listened to his soul searching speech carefully. The wind chilly in the August evening. Bushroot's question hung in the air for several moment's until his plant companion finally responded.

'Does it matter? Those humans have tormented you. They made you what you are today. Are you not angry with them at all for what they have done to you? Done to us? The plant world is dying. You know that as well as any other plant. Don't you want the same revenge as the rest of us?'

Bushroot didn't reply. He sighed once more and leaned back against Dandren's thick, strong trunk, dangling one of his root-like feet over the branch he sat on. Bushroot shook his head.

"Will it do any good? Society will still do this to us. They'll still build their sky scrapers and tear down our forests for greedy gain. We can fight back all we want but it won't help any in the least" he began. "I just don't want to see any of you hurt. Plants have been there for me ever since I can remember and I can't live with the idea of you no longer being there for me. I don't want to be evil anymore..." With that confession out in the open, Bushroot curled up into a ball once again.

Dandren took one of his branches and gently rubbed Bushroot on the shoulder. Bushroot closed his eyes, enjoying the feeling of being comforted.

'I understand. You are going through a difficult time. Yes. Perhaps that is all you need. Time. We will postpone the war for now, but whenever the right time comes, we will go to war, master.'

Bushroot looked up at Dandren, not liking the sound of that very much, but didn't argue. Despite his inner demons and trying to sort out what he wanted, Bushroot felt at ease as he sat with Dandren. Being with his 'children' always made him feel peaceful and loved.

But his happy moment ended quickly when the thousands of tiny voices in his mind began to sound overjoyed and started giving little shrieks of excitement. He then heard the loud banging of someone banging on his greenhouse door. Bushroot knew who it was without looking.

'It's him! The one made of H2O!' cried another tree in excitement.

The scientist wasn't fully sure, but due to the fact that Liquidator was made out of water, his plants aboslutely adored him.

Getting up and moving around Dandren's trunk to get a good look, he could see that it was in fact Liquidator. The watery canine seemed to sense their presence before they could get any closer. With a smile, Liquidator sloshed his way over to where Bushroot and Dandren were, the front door forgotten.

"Hello, Reggie!" grinned Liquidator. He then turned to greet the tree he knew to be Dandren. "Good evening to you, Dandren! My! What a surprise it is to see you out of the Greenhouse! I was not aware you took Dandren out for walks like you do with Spike, Reggie!" "

Dandren seemed to bow to Liquidator the best way a tree could. Liquidator and Dandren, both being dear friends to Bushroot, knew each other well enough to be civil and consider one another mutual friends. At the mention of Spike, as though he knew he was being talked about, the Venus Fly Trap burst through the Greenhouse doors, clambering his way in a clumsy fashion over to the liquid canine. Liquidator greeted him with a gentle pat on the head.

A large grin appeared on Bushroot's beak and he was surprised when a genuine laugh escaped his beak. Buddy always knew how to cheer him up. "Buddy! What are you doing here-I mean- Heh, Hi!" squeaked Bushroot as he jumped down form his place on Dandren's branch to rush over to his boyfriend. Liquidator met him half way as he stretched his watery arm around him, placing his hand on the other's back and pulling him close.

"Aww, can't a concerned entrepreneur come and check on his boyfriend?" replied Liquidator with large bright smile that Bushroot loved so much.

The floral bird in question blushed and ran a hand through his petals. "Golly, you didn't have to come all the way over here just to check in on me, Bud. I'm fine! I'm just a bit tired is all."

Liquidator nodded, placing a quick kiss on Bushroot's cheek. "Yes, you've been keeping to yourself the last few days."

Bushroot nodded, deciding there was no use in denying it. "Yeah, I've been very lethargic lately."

"Any ideas as to why?" was Liquidator's next question. "Bad fertilizer? Not enough sun?"

Bushroot shook his head. "No. I'm not sure what it is, but its none of those things." He was about to say something else when Liquidator's lips met his. The kiss was brief and urgent, yet filled with more emotion than the mutant scientist had been expecting.

Once they broke apart, Liquidator took a finger and gently raised Bushroot's chin so that they could make eye contact. "I am here for you, Reggie. Never forget that. Whatever your problems are, come to me."

Bushroot sighed, allowing the liquid dog to hold him close. He nodded into his chest as he rested his head on Liquidator's shoulder. "I know..." His thoughts immediately went back to the rooftop. Unbidden images of the other night sprang to his mind without his control. The reminder that every time he thought about going out and committing crimes he now felt a bubble of anxious nerves well up inside of him. He hated the feeling. He thought about confessing all this to Liquidator, but he knew deep down the other villain simply wouldn't understand. This was his problem and his alone; therefore he was going to figure it out by himself.

The most terrifying part of all this was that, if it was true, and Bushroot simply wasn't meant to be the villain he's been claiming to be all these years; did that mean Liquidator wouldn't love him anymore? The two of them were quite the pair as villains. Would Liquidator support him if he decided to reform? He couldn't stand the thought if Liquidator didn't. He's always believed Liquidator to be far too good for him. Why would someone so brave, confident, and clever ever want to be with someone like Bushroot? At least when he's a villain they have that much in common. That was what scared him most. The possibility of losing Liquidator in the process.

"Please, Reggie. Tell me what has you so down?" begged Liquidator softly, bringing Bushroot back to reality as a watery hand lifted up his chin once more. Bushroot looked into his translucent eyes.

Bushroot smiled and leaned in to kiss his aqueous lover. "Don't worry about it! I'm feeling better already, believe me! Just having you here helps!"

Liquidator didn't look convinced but he said nothing else on the topic.

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The evening was quiet and the wind was soft and cool. The quarter moon shown brightly down on the city of St. Canard as the stars twinkled all around it.

But nothing mattered to the two ducks who were currently enjoying each others company out on the terrace of the McCawber Mansion, which Morgana worked hard to fix up for their date.

Darkwing Duck sat across from her at the small metal table; God-only-knew-what on his plate. He tore his eyes off the glowing angel known as Morgana for a moment to remind himself bitterly that he would have to eat that disgusting looking substance on his plate in order to make his angel happy. His stomach screamed against the very thought of it.

He always tried his best to keep Morgana happy, for when she was happy, he was happy. Her little friend spider, Archie, was currently dozing beside the red candle that sat in the middle of their small table.

"Oh, Dark darling, isn't this wonderful? Why, just look at that moon!" his angel was saying. He glanced up at the moon with a smile.

"Yeah, it really is lovely isn't it? But it is nothing compared to you" Darkwing said softly, his eyes lowering back to Morgana as he smiled at her.

"You're just saying that!" blushed Morgana, turning away as she giggled with glee.

Darkwing shook his head "I am not!" He was grinning like a fool at her radiance. "Why there is no beauty on this earth more beautiful than you!"

After several moments of contended silence, Morgana looked back over at him, a curious look in her eyes. "So, how has everything been? Any big crimes?"

Darkwing shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly though the look on his face implied he was ready to boast and shine up his ego."Well, the city has been pretty much crime free the last few weeks. Of course, there have been those reports of the overgrowing plants, but they stopped growing a couple days ago and I haven't been hearing anything more. I'm starting to think it was just some kind of fluke. Like the weather or something." He arrogantly looked at his fingernails, making sure they were flawless. "Or, heh heh, they knew I was lurking about and they thought better than to mess with the great Darkwing Duck!"

Morgana nodded, fighting the urge to roll her eyes at his antics. She quickly frowned when a thought struck her. "You don't think it had anything to do with Bushroot, do you?" She adjusted the candle that was sitting between them, which caused Archie to wake up and grumble.

Darkwing watched as the spider slowly circled around the candle a few times, angrily grumbling, before finding a new spot to rest and fall asleep. He then remembered her question and shook his head. "I tried as hard as I could to get some evidence to prove it was him, but I couldn't find a trace of him!"

Morgana nodded, a wave of pity falling over her as she watched her boyfriend. She always felt bad when she knew Darkwing was having a tough time with a case. She was then surprised when Darkwing started nervously scratching the back of his neck, as though he wanted to say something but couldn't find the correct words.

"Um, Morgana, sweetie?" he began without making eye contact.

"Yes?" she replied kindly.

"Well, you see, there is another reason that I'm completely baffled about everything. The other night, before all this plant business started, there was an incident involving Bushroot. When I was stopping the Fearsome Five from robbing another laboratory, something happened while I was gone. See, Launchpad and Gosalyn stayed behind on the roof top to take care of Quackerjack and Bushroot. Well, Quackerjack apparently used some of his toys to try and make Gosalyn fall off the roof."

Darkwing paused to clear his throat while Morgana gasped in surprised. "Is she alright!?"

The vigilante nodded and continued. "You think I'd be here if she wasn't? No offense!"

Morgana nodded and waved him off, urging him to continue with the story.

"Well, just as she was going to fall, Bushroot apparently used his plant powers and saved her with vines. He saved her from falling off the roof, Morg!" he finished.

There was silence as the enchantress took this new information in. Morgana then leaned back in her chair, a small smile playing on her bill. She crossed her arms and said almost smugly, "Well, now. It sounds as though the good doctor wishes to reform..."

Darkwing frowned. He had hoped that Morgana would not agree with Launchpad and Gosalyn in the matter, but it seemed she did. He figured he couldn't be too surprised since Morgana had once reformed as a villain herself. Though before he could get himself to calm down and keep his stubborn ego from speaking, he opened his big beak. ". "That's exactly what Gosalyn and Launchpad said!" he began loudly. He leaned over the table after having pushed aside his untouched plate."But I just can't bring myself to believe it! Bushroot? Reform? He's just not the type! It's just not possible for a villain like him to-" He stopped talking, seeing the nasty glare and dark aura beginning to form around his date.

"What are you implying, Darkwing Duck!? Are you saying that villains are incapable of feeling guilty for their actions and wanting to change their ways!? Is that not what I did myself!? Or do you still believe that I am a villain at heart?" Morgana had, at this point, stood up and was glaring down at the mallard in front of her.

Darkwing cowered back in his chair at the sight of her fury, already regretting his words. He figured he might as well start begging for forgiveness. "Please Morg, sweetie! That's not what I meant at all! I know you're no longer a villain and you MUST believe me when I say how proud I am that you've reformed! You're good now, I see that! Now please...Calm down..." His voice held pure honestly and sincerity, though for extra safety he quickly hopped out of his chair so that he could put it between him and angry girlfriend he was now dealing with.

Morgana did seem to calm down, for the dark aura around her dwindled down a bit, but she still held a hard look at her boyfriend. "Then tell me" she said more calmly. "Why is it so hard for you to see that maybe Bushroot wishes to do what I did? What I did for you, I might add." The last bit was slightly seductive, making Darkwing blush.

"I-I don't know" he fumbled as he tried to stay on the subject of Bushroot. "I guess I just have more of a soft spot when it comes to you. I'm hypnotized by your beauty."

Morgana knew he was simply trying to get back on her good graces, but she couldn't help but blush and bashfully look away at his words.

Seeing that the ice was once again broken and the danger was out of way, Darkwing continued. He reached over and took Morgana's hand after moving back around the front of the chair. "Now, how about if I take your opinion into consideration and think the possibility of what you're saying to be true." This earned him an appreciative smile from the enchantress. "I will try to believe in the idea that Bushroot could reform and try talking it out with him before I jump to conlusions next time I run across him. Does that sound fair?"

Morgana smiled and stepped over to the shorter mallard. She rested her hands on his shoulders and pushed him down in his chair. Darkwing just looked up at her lovingly, allowing her to have her way with him. She slowly sat down in his lap and took off his fedora hat. The height difference between them had always made Darkwing slightly uncomfortable and he knew Morgana felt it too, but in times like this, he really didn't care. Not when this gorgeous creature was kissing him the way she was. He kissed her back eagerly, his hands appreciating her curvaceous body.

In times like this, he couldn't care about anything but his lovely Morgana.

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A knife hit the wall, dead center. Another knife slammed beside it a moment later, both stuck in the wall. In one of the many large buildings in St. Canard, sat Negaduck in his red chair. In his lap were several knives and daggers. He threw them at the wall, since they seemed to calm his forever raging temper.

"Tell me..." his voice was a harsh whisper. "What seems to be our biggest problem whenever we plan a crime?" His question was directed to the four who were standing on the other side of the desk that sat behind Negaduck's chair. Two were ducks, one a dog, and the other a rat.

Quackerjack instantly started bouncing on the balls of his feet, the bells on his hat jingling. "Oh! Oh! Never any parking!?" giggled Quackerjack. He was currently chewing loudly on a peice of gum, popping it every few minutes; much to Negaduck's annoyance. Negaduck's frown only deepened as the popping continued, his chair still having its back towards them. He didn't reply to the jester's answer.

"Not enough light bulbs are saved?" opted Megavolt, hoping this were true. He'd do almost anything to see that more of his luminaries were saved. Still no reply.

"Our plan always end up in the frying pan?" provided Liquidator.

Negaduck began to growl, throwing several more of the knives and daggers into the wall in front of him. Then, a meek voice replied:

"Darkwing Duck?"

Negaduck's eyes widened and a snicker formed on his beak. He turned around in his chair, finally facing them. He held the remaining knife threatening in his hand. "Yes, Bushy. Darkwing Duck is the problem. That stupid klutz is always the one who ruins our plans!"

There was one loud pop from Quackerjack.

"If you pop your gum ONE more time, Chuckles, I'm gonna make sure you CHOKE on it!" snarled Negaduck.

Quackerjack, who had been chewing obnoxiously on some gum, gave him a large wide-eyed innocent look before popping his gum one more time.

The sound caused a vein to nearly pop in Negaduck's neck. He threw the knife at Quackerjack, who easily dodged it. "Do you think I was bluffing?!"

Quackerjack squeaked and dove to the floor behind Megavolt. He spat the gum out of his mouth, managing to somehow spit it into the trash can. Negaduck glared at the clown, who gulped. "Sorry, Negs. Nothin' like double chewy bubble gum, though! Want some?!" he said, sounding like someone who had not just been threatened with a knife. He poked his arm through Megavolt's legs, causing the electrified villain to give a huff of indignation, and offered Negaduck several pieces of the chewy gum.

Negaduck sneered down at the offering as though it was the most disgusting thing he'd ever seen. "NO! Now stop goofing off so we can get started with our plans!"

Quackerjack made a little humming noise as he stood back up. He stuffed the gum back into his pants pocket and wrapped his arm around Megavolt in a casual manner. Megavolt grumbled though as the jester began leaning most of his weight on him.

Bushroot and Liquidator watched the display silently, waiting for what Negaduck had to say.

"Now, if you nitwits would stop being idiots for two seconds we can get started"Negaduck began. He glared at those he called his 'lackies'; sneering and tapping the edge of his red hat. "First off, we are going back to that laboratory and are going to try and steal that machine once more."

"Woah, woah woah WOAH!" exclaimed Megavolt who raised his hands up in alarm. "We've tried robbing it before? Why do I not remember this!?"

Everyone rolled their eyes as Quackerjack laughed maniacally into his ear. He whipped out Mr. Banana Brain and said in the doll's voice, "You don't remember because you have a fried brain, Crane!"

Liquidator, who was standing next to Bushroot, spoke up. "Ahh, but isn't it true that the security at the laboratory was tripled since our last attempt?"

Negaduck crossed his arms, a half lidded gaze on his face. "Yeah, your point?"

Bushroot groaned and hunched his back slightly as he asked quietly, ""How exactly are we going to get past them all? Darkwing is probably watching the place like a hawk now anyways."

Negaduck regarded their concerns with little interest. He cleared his throat and said, "Simple. We use bait."

The hideout went silent. Liquidator seemed interested in the idea, for his ears wriggled with intrigue. Quackerjack bounced with glee at the thought while Megavolt snickered.

Bushroot, however, went pale."B-Bait? But-How will that help? And who...or what will be the bait?" he asked nervously. He felt the air in his lungs tighten, fearful of what the answer was.

"They can amp up security all they want, but we can handle them! Darkwing Duck is the only reason we didn't get that machine the other night boys. But this time, we will be prepared. Have any of you noticed that a little red-headed girl is constantly following Dork Wing like a little lost kitten?" Negaduck nonchalantly studied his finger nails as he waited for them to respond.

Megavolt's plug hat sparked as he tried to remember if he ever saw a little red-headed girl. "Wait, is she in her forties?" he asked no one in particular.

"No, Megs, she would be most likely nine years old. Maybe ten" replied Liquidator.

"Okay then. I'm not thinkin' of the right person, then" replied Megavolt.

Quackerjack leaned over Megavolt's shoulder in curiosity. "Whomever are you speaking about, Megsy!? GASP! You have another friend besides ME, don't you?! I'M BETRAYED!" The jester instantly started wailing, big fake tears coming out of his ears as he sobbed in Megavolt's shoulder.

Negaduck smacked his palm to his forehead in frustration.

As the other four continued to squabble, Bushroot tried to control himself and regain his breathing. It was just as he feared. They were going to kidnap the very same little girl he had rescued on that roof top. The very same incident that was still plaguing his mind. The worst part was, he knew he wouldn't be able to go through with this plan. He was going to want to bail, which was not an option when it came to being in Negaduck's ranks. There was no such thing as a quitter as far as Negaduck was concerned.

"ANYWAYS!" screamed Negaduck in order to gain everyone's attention back. "That girl must mean something to that Darkwing twerp! So, when Darkwing and his bumbling sidekick arrive, no less with that girl in their shadows..." He trailed off, his eyes scanning the four of them.

The mutant plant duck knew immediately that Negaduck was about to choose the girl's kidnapper. He clamped his eyes shut, praying as hard as he could that he would not be picked. Maybe if he closed his eyes and trembled he would disappear. He doubted it, but it was a distant dream of hope.

After what seemed like a decade, Negaduck finally finished. "Bushroot! You will be the one to grab her!"

"Aww, how come you get the fun job?" whined the jester.

Negaduck glared at him."Because you fool, I call the shots!" he bellowed angrily."Plus, I have other plans for you, Chuckles!"

"Then what will I do with her?" Bushroot found himself asking before more squabbling between his teammates could start. .

Negaduck shrugged, turning his attention back to the mutant plant duck. "I don't care! Get creative!"

"Maybe take her to my greenhouse?" the floral bird suggested uncertainly.

Negaduck looked at him, then snickered. "Yeah, that'll work" he grinned. "Torture her a little if you must."

Bushroot shivered at the thought. The rest of the night consisted of Negaduck's detailed plans of how the night would continue. But Bushroot didn't pay any attention. Why bother? He wasn't going to be with them at that point anyways. He was going to be back at his greenhouse, his sanctuary, 'torturing' a little girl, as Negaduck put it.

He honestly didn't know how he got himself into these terrible situations. It didn't help that Dandren's words kept sticking at the back of his mind; tormenting him. Once the meeting was over, it was time for him to start dreading the next evening when all of this would be taking place. His mind instantly went back to what Dandren had been saying just earlier that day. He had mentioned how everyone treated him badly, wanting only his abilities. Well, maybe he didn't say those exact words, but sadly, Bushroot knew it was true. If it wasn't for his telepathy and powers over the plants, he would still be the nobody he was before.

Negaduck glared at Bushroot and Liquidator who were the only two who had yet to leave, yet didn't say anything. Instead, he opened up one of the desk drawers and pulled out a bottle of alcohol. Neither villain could tell what it was he was drinking, but they both knew it didn't matter. It was still alcohol.

Negaduck twisted the bottle cap off and took several swigs from it before demanding, "Well, what the hell are you two still doing here!? Get to work!"

Bushroot desperately wanted to grab Liquidator's hand and pull him out of the room, but thought better of it. He twisted his hands together as he watched Liquidator stand there with confidence. He would never know how the liquid dog managed to keep his cool like that under Negaduck's evil stare.

A liquid hand fell on Bushroot's shoulder, snapping him out of his melancholy. Beside him, Liquidator asked, "Negs, if you don't mind me asking-What is so important about this machine that makes you want it so bad?"

"You'll soon find out! All you need to know right now is that I want it! You shouldn't need any more initiative than that!" roared Negaduck. Bushroot jumped with a yelp, instinctively hiding behind Liquidator, who turned around and gently ushered him out the door.

Once they were safely out the door, Bushroot was unable to contain himself. "Ooh, how do you do that!?" he demanded, glaring at Liquidator. "How do you manage to stand up to him like that and talk to him!?"

Liquidator shrugged. "I didn't stand up to him, I simply asked him a question." the former salesman pointed out. He then added before Bushroot could reply, "I don't know though. I guess I'm used to speaking my mind. I've done it all my life. If I want to say something, I say it. Doesn't matter who I'm speaking to." He chuckled and wrapped his arm around his companion's thin shoulders. "I'm sure working numerous jobs in retail all my life have something to do with that too!"

His words only seemed to dampen Bushroot's mood further. "I guess I just don't have as much confidence as you do..."

"Aww, don't be so rough on yourself, Reggie! Cut yourself some slack! You have a lot of inner demons holding you back. You're getting a lot better at speaking your mind though!"

Bushroot perked up at this. "Really?"

Liquidator nodded enthusiastically. Suddenly, Liquidator pulled Bushroot in closer to him, his arm still around the floral duck's shoulders, which made the plant duck pass right through him and tumble into the wall and fall to the floor.

"Ow..." moaned Bushroot as he rubbed the back of his head.

Liquidator looked at him with wide eyes, as though he hadn't a clue as to how that happened. "Heh, whoops! Sorry! Guess I pulled you in a bit too hard!"

He extended his hand to help him up. Bushroot took it and was up instantly. "Thanks..."

"S'alright..." slurred Bushroot dizzily, still rubbing his head. He was suddenly tired, his eyes half open. He pressed the elevator button which was at the opposite end of the hallway. The door immediately opened. "I just hate it when that happens..." Liquidator smiled sheepishly and the metallic doors shut, gently running a hand through his lover's petals.

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Walking into his greenhouse several hours later, Bushroot felt like falling asleep in his favorite flower pot and never waking back up. Liquidator had left, saying something about needing to check a few pipes back at his own home before a quick kiss goodbye. Bushroot's mind though was filled with what was to come and what was being expected of him.

Wrapping his arms around himself, he walked right past Dandren, who was now back inside the greenhouse. As he passed the large tree he could sense Dandren's concern.

'What is wrong master? Please, I demand to know!'

Bushroot didn't reply. He didn't reply to any of his children. He didn't want to. Because he knew he couldn't ignore the truth any longer. They were all right about what they had said about the others and how he was treated on a daily basis. Negaduck was very aware of how sensitive he was, yet he still had the gull to give him the role of kidnapper. It was like casting a rat to be the rat killer in a play.

Shivering, Bushroot sat down on the edge of one of the many walkways of the greenhouse, placing his elbows on his knees and sighing.

'Why me?' he thought bitterly to himself in the quiet of the night.

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	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

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Thunder rolled through the sky as the wind whirled through the city; showing no sign of relenting. Rain poured heavily from the clouds, drenching everything is sight.

However, on a night like this, crime did not sleep. There was still plans to be made and carried out. This included the large plan that Negaduck had up his sleeve for the ozone-cleanser machine that was to be stolen.

Several rooftops away from the science laboratory building stood Negaduck. Beside him was Megavolt, who was grumbling darkly as he held an umbrella over his head in the hopes of avoiding a short out. Behind the two of them were Quackerjack, Liquidator, and Bushroot.

Megavolt snarled, "Doh! I swear you guys do this to me on PURPOSE! You know I hate being outside in the rain! But you all insist on doing everything out in it!"

"Shut it, Volt Breath! Unless one of you suddenly gained the ability to control the weather as well, I suggest you shut up!" snapped the angry mallard.

"But it's so FUN in the rain!" cackled Quackerjack. He threw his head back and opened his mouth so that he could catch raindrops on his tongue.

Negaduck had claimed to have done some research and that at midnight, the guards took a half hour break down in the cafeteria. Knowing that this was the perfect time to attack, Negaduck had planned to strike then. Of course, he also knew that Darkwing Duck prowled the night and hoped that if they were several buildings away, it would lead him off track enough for them to get inside once they got to the other rooftop.

Bushroot was trying to take deep calming breaths, reminding himself that no matter what, he couldn't bail out. Negaduck would surely kill him if he so much as thought about it.

The rain started to fall even harder as they heard the familiar speech call out into the night. "I am the terror that FLAPS in the night! I am the pain in your foot that refuses to be healed! I am DARKWING DUCK!" A puff of purple smoke appeared and faded quickly, revealing Darkwing and Gosalyn standing on a nearby roof.

Negaduck cackled with glee. "Alright, boys!" he cried. "You know what to do!"

Quackerjack, Megavolt, Liquidator, and Negaduck started making their way towards the science building rooftop by going over to a rope they had already prepared. It was hooked onto the rooftop they wanted to get to.

Bushroot gulped frantically. He knew his role in all of this. He was to hide, making sure he was not seen. He had stepped back and away from the others. Liquidator had given him a quick reassuring smile before taking off with the others. It had given the mutant plant duck slight hope.

Darkwing was already making his way towards the roof he was currently on. It was Bushroot's job to grab the little girl who he knew was trailing behind him. His blue eyes landed on Gosalyn who, as predicted, was right on Darkwing's tail.

"I told you we should have gone to the other roof, Darkwing!" the young duckling criticized.

"Be quiet, Gosalyn! Be lucky you're even here!" the mutant heard Darkwing snap back.

Launchpad, Bushroot noted, was no where in sight. The floral bird wasn't sure if he should feel relieved or worried about that. Was the pilot sidekick planning to be back up?

Pushing away his thoughts, Bushroot slowly moved back a corner of the rooftop and crouched, hoping his dark skin would help conceal him from Darkwing's eyes.

"Oh, Dorkwing!" taunted Negaduck from adjacent side of the roof. "Over here!" The yellow clad mallard then pushed Liquidator and Quackerjack down the stairwell that led inside the building, closing the door behind them.

"Stop you villains!" Darkwing could be seen pulling out his hook shot and shooting it so that they could cross to the other roof. With a thud, Darkwing landed on the roof with Gosalyn landing right behind him.

"I'm not sure about this" whispered Gosalyn. Thinking the two of them were alone and not seeing Bushroot hiding due to the darkness and rain, she added, "This feels like a trap, dad!"

Bushroot's eyes widened. 'Dad!?' He felt as though the wind had been knocked out of him as crouched there in the darkness. He had never known the relationship between Darkwing and the young duckling, but never had he guessed they were father and daughter. Looking back, it certainly made sense.

In the present, Darkwing hissed angrily, "Gosalyn! How many time must a tell you!? When you're out with me on patrol, you cannot call me 'dad'!"

Gosalyn winced and groaned at her mistake. "Ugh, I know! I'm sorry! I'm usually pretty good about it but its habit!"

Darkwing mumbled something else, but it was too soft for Bushroot to pick up on it. He didn't care much anyways. He was still in shock. It now made so much sense! He now understood why that little girl was always tagging along with Darkwing! Not because she was the biggest fan of his fan-club, but because Darkwing was her father!

'Hmm...Strange though. She looks nothing like him. Maybe she takes after her mother' thought Bushroot with mild interest.

Darkwing was now running over to the door Negaduck and the others had just gone through. , "Come on, Gos! Follow me and be careful!"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. I know" she grumbled. Darkwing gave a stern look but said nothing more before opening up the door and heading inside.

Bushroot knew it was now or never. He had to act! He watched as Gosalyn grabbed the doorknob to walk in through the door next.

Forcing himself up from his crouched position, Bushroot lunged forward and ran across the rooftop, grabbing her by the waist before she could get through the doorway. With a yelp of surprise, Gosalyn's foot hit the door; slamming it shut.

Bushroot managed to pull her away from the door, though he fell over backwards in the process. "Ack!" he cried out in shock as he fell to the concrete roof with Gosalyn landing on top of him.

Gosalyn shook her head to get the dizziness out of her head at the sudden collision before looking around her. She tried getting up but found that Bushroot's vine-like arms were slowing snaking around her. only to see that she couldn't, for something soft, but heavy was keeping her from moving. She glanced down and realized that she was sitting on top of the villain.

"Heeey! Get offa me, you creep! I'm gonna teach you to mess with-" She paused in her rant when she saw that it was Bushroot. "You!" she cried out accusingly.

Bushroot blinked several times, his own mind trying to sort itself out after having had the wind knocked out of him. His hands and arms had instinctively wrapped around Gosalyn's torso despite his dazed state. Gosalyn's shouts brought him back to reality as his eyes focused in on the young duckling.

Acting quickly, and with speed too fast for Gosalyn to dodge, he managed to slip out from beneath her and cover her mouth with his leaf-like hand, pulling her up on her feet and pushing her back against his chest. Gosalyn fought back, trying to kick him and biting his hand.

"Hey, hey, now! Watch it!" he shot back at her. "You're as bad as Spike with all that biting!"

Gosalyn managed to free her mouth from his hand's grip, wishing he wasn't holding her around the torso so hard so she could get free. "You're one to talk! Now let me go, you mutated freak!"

Bushroot felt as though he'd been hit in the gut. 'Freak' she had said.

He'd been called that so many times in his life, but for some reason, this time, it hurt more than it normally did. Bushroot struggled with himself not to break down now. He would have to wait until after he took her to his greenhouse to have his breakdown and sob fest. He'd tie her up and then he could go angst in a corner all he wanted.

With a wave of his hand, a small vine began to grow below their feet. It grew to the height of their heads and then bloomed a giant purple and yellow flower. "Hello, Cornelia" muttered Bushroot. "So kind of you to help me out this evening."

He gently petted the flower affectionately with his free hand. His other arm had been extended out so that it wrapped around Gosalyn several times. Cornelia the flower lowered itself down to Gosalyn's anger contorted face. The flower released a small bit of yellow pollen, but even the small amount had a large effect on the duckling. Gosalyn's eyes quickly began to droop and her struggles against Bushroot's arm weakened before she was soon asleep in Bushroot's lap. But not before she muttered, "You won't get away with...this..."

Bushroot sighed as the stem of Cornelia moved away and crawled back from the rooftop he summoned it from. Looking up into the pouring rain, Bushroot sighed, knowing the hardest part was yet to come.

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Dragging Gosalyn back to his greenhouse was not as hard as he belived it would be. He managed to get her there in no time and it soon it had stopped raining.

As the floral mutant made his way closer to the front door, he was alarmed by the sound of a cawing sound was heard near his head. Suddenly sharp talons were pulling at his petals.

"Ahh! Stop it! Get out of here you stupid pin cushion!" snapped Bushroot, whacking at the winged creature with his free hand. The crow managed to pull out three of his petals before flying off. Bushroot grumbled darkly, noting the little red hat at the bird's head. "Crazy bird! What's your problem?!"

Turning back to the task at hand, he opened the door to his greenhouse by kicking it with his rooted foot, never loosening his secure grip around Gosalyn.

Of all the times for his telepathy with the plants to be grating, now was one of them. Grudgingly, Bushroot walked in, ignoring as much as he could of what his 'children' has to say about his most recent crime.

He took Gosalyn to the center of his greenhouse where he laid her gently on a pot full of spoil while he went and grabbed a chair. "SPIKE! Find me some rope!" he ordered his mutant fly trap dog. He knew the creature was around somewhere. "Fetch me some rope, Spike!"

It didn't take long for Spike to find what his master wanted. The fly trap came bounding over several minutes later with some rope clamped tightly in his large muzzle. Bushroot had since then brought over a metal chair from his desk and set it in the middle of the cleared out space. Gosalyn was still fast asleep in the large pot of soil he had placed her in, completely unaware of what was happening to her.

Bushroot smiled at Spike's obedience. "Thank you, Spike! Good job!" He went to tug the rope of his pet's muzzle, only to find that Spike didn't want let go of it. "Spike" he said in warning. The dog like creature refused to give it up. "Spike! Give it here!" He pulled but only managed to get his faithful companion in the mood for a game of tug of war. After several minutes of light cursing and grumbling, did the scientist manage to get the rope of him. "Silly thing!" he admonished as Spike yipped around the Greenhouse happily.

He turned his focus back to Gosalyn, gently lifting her up and placing her in the chair. Gosalyn's chin was resting on her chest as he wrapped the rope around her and secured it tightly behind the chair with several knots.

Heaving a great sigh, the mutant plant duck turned to see a the large familiar form of Dandren. The large tree already knew what was going through his master's head and knew immediately he had to act.

'Master?'

Bushroot rolled his eyes."Leave me alone, Dandren" was the soft reply Dandren received. Bushroot looked up at the large tree and glared at him. "I really don't want to talk about this right now."

'The longer you wait to face the truth the harder it is going to be on you'

Bushroot frowned. He looked up at Dandren, who was swaying his branches back and forth softly . "Listen!" snapped Bushroot, his usual meek voice was replaced with one of anger and slight authority. "This isn't about what they have done to me! This is about what I have done!" He motioned over to the blacked out Gosalyn in the chair. "What I just did! So stop reminding me of what they have done to me! I know what they've done! I am reminded every time I look in the mirror!"

His voice made Gosalyn shift in her spot on the chair, making the plant duck cringe in fright. He wasn't ready for her to be awake yet. "Shh..." he mumbled her way. "Go back to sleep just a bit longer..." he practically begged. He then let out a deep sigh before turning back to Dandren.

He practically jumped out of his skin when he heard the threatening voice of Gosalyn not a moment later.

"Let me go Bushroot or you'll regret it! Darkwing Duck should be here any minute!" she snarled at him.

Blinking, Bushroot took in the sight of the angry red head, before narrowing his eyes. "I wouldn't be so sure of that! Negaduck and the boys are keeping him busy tonight over at the science laboratory" he informed her.

Gosalyn seemed taken aback a fraction of a second before continuing to glare at the other duck."Well, what do you want with me?" she demanded.

Bushroot didn't answer her question, just stared at her curiously before turning to examine the bark of one of the nearby trees.

A thought struck her and she blurted out before thinking, "Why did you save me the other night?"

Bushroot noticeably tensed. His back was turned to her and she could see the way his shoulders rose slightly with tension as she asked the question. She wasn't able to read his face, but judging by his silence, she could tell he didn't know how to answer.

Bushroot stopped playing with the flower he had been examining and stared at his hands as if they held the answer for him. "Well..." he said, his voice on the verge of breaking. "Because...I knew it wasn't right. I just couldn't stand to see you fall. You just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. You shouldn't be punished for that. And I knew I was able to help you, so I did."

This took Gosalyn by surprise. She had not been expecting such a thoughtful, deep response. It made her look at Bushroot more carefully. As she and Launchpad had guessed: maybe he wasn't such a terrible person as he seemed. Maybe he was exactly what he always claimed to be. Misunderstood.

After a pause that seemed to stretch on forever, Gosalyn finally spoke, "You were told to kidnap me. You didn't do it at your own choice. Negaduck forced you to." It wasn't a question.

"Just following orders, yeah" Bushroot answered. He finally turned to face her after he responded, and looked her in the face. Gosalyn didn't know what to say. She wanted to be angry at him, like she normally would be if she were kidnapped by anyone else. However, for some reason, she couldn't make herself be angry.

She looked around at the Greenhouse again, wanting to do something other than stare at him and he gladly continued to keep his gaze away as well. He didn't like having visitors in his greenhouse. They made him nervous after all the years of social and verbal abuse he'd lived through from his colleagues and even his family near the end of their crossings. If they weren't one of his plants, they didn't belong. He supposed though that he could make this one exception.

Technically he wasn't even doing his job right. He was supposed to be 'torturing' her, as Negaduck had put it. The very thought made him want to gag.

After several long minutes of watching Bushroot tend to his trees and whisper to them, her anger slowly evaporated. Curiosity soon replaced it. Being tied up to the chair and not getting any response out of her captor, Gosalyn was able to look around and for the first time really look at everything around her.

The Greenhouse truly was beautiful. Or rather, the plants that lived in it. It was like a magical forest filled with all kinds of assorted flowers and trees and other fauna. Some of the more exotic flowers were breathtaking in their brilliant bright colors. Every single plant, from the tiniest blade of grass, to the largest tree looked vibrantly colorful and full of life. It was obvious how well the mutant scientist took care of every last plant. The humidity in the Greenhouse only seemed to add to the breathtaking atmosphere around her.

Gosalyn shifted in the chair, trying to ignore the rubbing of the rope against her feathers. Her thoughts quickly changed to more of the present. She continued to watch as Bushroot ignored her in favor of admiring his dear plants. She could hear him talking to a hibiscus plant, saying something about how he would move the plant over to a more shady location later.

There was a snap and Gosalyn flinched to look over to where Spike was trying desperately to catch a fly that was buzzing around. Everything just seemed so peaceful, it was hard for Gosalyn to remember that she was in the middle of being a hostage.

"Did you grow all these plants?" came the impressed voice of Gosalyn. Bushroot looked over at to see that she was smiling widely, looking up and all around her. "They're beautiful, you know!"

Bushroot shuffled his feet as he felt that warmth of a blush coming onto his cheeks. "Well, yes. It's kinda what I do." He chuckled nervously.

It was then that Gosalyn's eyes landed on Dandren, who had been obediently acting like a tree and not moving. Her eyes widened. "You couldn't have grown that tree! Why, its got to be so old! Or..." she looked back at a nervous Bushroot. "Did you use your...abilities...on this one?"

Bushroot knew he was just imagining it, but he could almost sense a bit of resentment in that statement, as though having and using his powers with the plants was what made him so evil. "You're a smart girl" he stated evenly; pushing away those thoughts. He looked at her through the corner of his eyes, having turned back to his plants. "I did make him grow faster."

Gosalyn struggled a bit at her bonds and grunted when she realized she wouldn't be able to get out of them. "You know,being bound to this chair is really uncomfortable."

Bushroot sighed. "I'm sorry about that. But you have to stay like that until I'm given further orders..."

"And when might that be!?" the duckling demanded to know.

Bushroot shook his head, his purple foliage bobbing back and forth. "I don't know..." muttered Bushroot as he scratched the back of his neck.

Gosalyn seemed angry at his response. "Some villain you are! Ya don't even know the next step in the plan!"

Bushroot's breathing hitched at the word 'villain'. "I'm a poor excuse for a villain. Is that what you're saying?" His voice was soft and filled with emotion.

Gosalyn blinked, not understanding what the mutant was trying to get at. "What do you-"

But Gosalyn was unable to finish her sentence, for there was a sudden flash that filled the sky outside the greenhouse and a loud bang of thunder behind it that made the glass of the greenhouse shake. Both ducks looked up at the ceiling, startled. Moments later the pitter-pattering sounds of rain could be heard hitting the glass.

"It started raining again..." whispered Bushroot. "And we have a thunder storm to accompany it this time. Lovely."

"It had stopped?" asked Gosalyn. She knew it had been raining before Bushroot kidnapped her and back when she had still been with Darkwing.

"Yes" was the short reply.

"You're a very gloomy, depressing person, you know that?" she blurted out without thinking. This made Bushroot look at her with wide eyes. He knew this already, but hearing someone else say it made his skin crawl for some reason. She didn't stop there. "Is this all you do? Stand around here with your plants?"

A deep frown formed on the mutant's bill. "W-what's wrong with that?" he asked hotly. "And for your information: no! I don't just stand around taking pity on myself! I'm still a scientist, despite everything that's happened! I still work on my research and conduct experiments!"

Gosalyn shrugged the best way she could with the rope around her so tight. "Sheesh! Sorry I asked!" she grumbled. She then shrugged as she thought it over more. "Then again, I guess you have a lot of reasons to be."

"You're right! I do have my reasons!" Bushroot was suddenly speaking quick and aggressively. "Because look, 'Reggie is a Veggie! Let's not go around him!'" A snarl formed on his beak at the reminders of all the taunts and jokes he once had to hear on a constant basis. Some of them he still heard from his teammates; especially Negaduck. Memories of the day he first became a mutant made him shudder violently. His fellow colleagues had burned him emotionally when those words left their beaks. It didn't help that it had been in front of Rhoda Dendren. Anger boiled in his veins as he spat out in a mocking voice, "'He's a freak!' They always said! "

Gosalyn was taken aback by Bushroot's sudden anger. She had never seen him so angry before. Not even the time when Bushroot had tried to cancel Christmas by stealing everyone's presents.

Gosalyn thought a moment. "I've never thought of you as a freak. I mean, yeah, I've called you one, but I don't see you as one. There is a difference you know. I call you those names out of anger and frustration for some of the stuff you put Darkwing through. But I honestly don't mean any of that."

Bushroot's anger vanished instantly and was replaced once more by shock. "You don't?" Bushroot was never able to hear a response, because it was at that moment that Dandren, who had been standing silently by this whole time, decided to act. Dandren began to shake his branches about, which made Gosalyn flinch in surprise and shock.

Bushroot looked over to his friend as well and his eyes widened. "What are you doing!?" he shouted in demand. Gosalyn and Bushroot both shared a confused look before looking back to Dandren, who was now uprooting his roots and heading over their way.

Bushroot repeated his question, his voice now higher and urgent. "What are you doing!?" Through his telepathy, Dandren wasn't saying anything to him, which Bushroot didn't like in the least. "Answer me!" screamed Bushroot angrily. His hands were in fists and he was shaking his arms up in down in his anger.

"Are you talking to the tree? Is the tree talking back to you!?" questioned Gosalyn in an alarmed voice.

This only made Bushroot more angry. "No! But he should be!" To Dandren, he cried once more, "Answer me!"

Dandren was still tromping his way towards them, oblivious to his master's fury. He came up to the chair Gosalyn was sitting in and stopped, making the young duckling tense. She curled up on herself the best way she could in hopes to avoid being hurt by the threatening tree. She didn't like the fact that a giant tree was behind her and clearly not obeying Bushroot: the master of all plants.

Bushroot got in between Dandren's trunk and Gosalyn's chair and unconsciously started pounding on his trunk. "I said stop it, Dandren!" his voice had calmed down a bit, but the anger was still evident.

Dandren stopped moving for a brief moment before taking one of his large branches and lowering it to Bushroot's and Gosalyn's level. The branch was lowered to be between him and Bushroot as the mutant plant duck stood protectively in front of Gosalyn. Bushroot held his ground; surely Dandren wasn't about to hurt him! Not his so called 'master'! Not the very scientist that had helped the weak and nearly dying sapling come back to life all those years ago! Bushroot held his arms out. "Stop this, Dandren! Now!"

'I'm sorry, master. But this is for the best.'

Without warning, Dandren took his branch and swung it hard in Bushroot's direction, making the plant duck get walloped by the branch and thrown several yards away. Crying out as he was hit, Bushroot went flying, not stopping until he crashed into his loyal dog Spike. Spike yelped in alarm as he frantically squirmed about until he was out from under his owner. Bushroot groaned as he managed to sit up and clutch at his now aching head. Spike licked at his arms, trying to comfort his master.

He looked up in time to see Dandren take another one of his branches, this time a smaller one, and loosen Gosalyn's bonds enough so that with another branch, he was able to grab her off of the chair.

In the meantime, Gosalyn did all that she could to get away. "You stay away from me you overgrown weed!" she threatened weakly. Her voice was trapped inside her throat as Dandren grabbed her with one of his branches before she could run once the ropes were undone. Dandren held her up in the air for several brief moments, as though he were regarding her carefully.

Again, without warning, he took his branch that she was currently held up in and swung it hard, making Gosalyn go flying. Yet she went much farther than Bushroot had and crashed right through the window of the greenhouse, going through it and landing unconscious in the pouring rain outside. The glass shattered loudly, falling into hundreds of pieces and cascading down to the floor like large pieces of dust. The cold wet grass had not softened the impact as Gosalyn fell onto it; out cold from the impact. A lightning bolt eerily lit up the sky before sending out a loud rumble of thunder.

Bushroot had watched on in utter disbelief, his mouth agape. It took him a few moments to get his bearings and force his body to react. When he did, he gently pushed Spike aside and stood up, running back over to Dandren.

"Why did you do that!?" he wanted to know. He rushed back over to Dandren's trunk, nearly crashing into it since he was disoriented and dizzy in his steps. "What is wrong with you!?" it was hard for him to talk since he was panting so much. Being thrown had truly knocked the wind out of him; he couldn't begin to imagine the condition Gosalyn was in.

'I've had enough, master...'

Bushroot stopped panting, his wide eyes filled with confusion. "What?"

'I wasn't about to sit back and allow that girl to brainwash you.'

"Brainwash me!? She wasn't brainwashing me!" the floral bird argued

'Yes she was. She was trying to convince you that she didn't see you as a freak! She was manipulating you!'

"How do you know she wasn't telling the truth!?" fought back Bushroot. There was a sudden uproar in the plants in his mind and Bushroot was amazed at how angry they all sounded. How passionate they were as they agreed with Dandren; believing she was faking.

Dandren swooped down one of his branches and grabbed Bushroot by his waist, this time with so much gentleness, Bushroot found it amazing that this was the same tree that had hit him minutes ago. Dandren placed Bushroot up on his many thick branches, waiting for the plant duck to get comfortable before moving his branch away again.

'Your kind, soft heart makes you vulnerable to this cruel, hateful world. You must realize, master, that no matter how much you want it, you will never belong to the outside world ever again. You are one of us and we desperately wish for your compliance to be with us.'

Bushroot closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He was hit with a dizzy spell, causing him to lean his back against Dandren. "That might be true' he relented softly after a moment. "But you didn't have to throw her through my window! I now have to fix that window..." It was a terrible comeback, but Bushroot didn't care at the moment. He was suddenly tired. He had a hunch Dandren was doing that to him on purpose.

"I have to check to see if she is alright" he said suddenly, attempting to get up form his spot. He didn't get far. Just as he was about to climb down the branch he was perched on, Dandren took one of his branches and kept him from moving. Bushroot's eyes widened. Anger then settled in. "You call me master, but you don't treat me as your master" he accused bitterly.

'It is for your own good. Forget about her. You must go to war with us. Please master! We beg of you! We will get your revenge for you and ourselves.'

Bushroot couldn't stand it anymore. "Again with this 'war' nonsense!" he moaned. "I don't want to go to war! What part of this don't you understand?!" He tried fighting against Dandren's branch by pushing on it with his feeble arms but with no such luck.

'Then you will sit and watch as we go to war.'

Dandren's voice sounded so determined and self confident. Bushroot's eyes widened in shock as he stopped in his pulling. He felt his heart skip a beat at the thought of him not having control over his plants as they terrorized St. Canard. He could just imagine the destruction they would cause without him there to control them. Then, Darkwing would end up having a REAL reason to put him behind bars for good! He would truly be the villain he was so often called! "No, please no!" he begged. Dandren ignored him. Bushroot's head was sudden filled with the cheering of all the plants in his greenhouse.

'To war!' they cried.

'We will make you proud, master!' others cried.

It was at this moment that Bushroot finally understood it all. As he watched his plants move about and uproot themselves, taking their own steps without his permission, he realized one insignificant thing: He no longer could control his raging 'children'. He stopped trying to order them about with his telepathy. To quiet them down. He now knew it was pointless. They wouldn't listen.

Trees, flowers, bushes, and everything else in between began to shake and shiver as they uprooted themselves and began to form ranks; grouping together by species and waiting for Dandren to command them.

As the up roaring got louder in his head as each plant uprooted itself; preparing for war, he sat there on Dandren's large branch, no longer needing to be held down by Dandren's other branch. He could do nothing but stare off into space as he discovered the truth.

That was when the sickening feeling of absolute loneliness clenched his heart and he realized he was completely and utterly alone.

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	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

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Darkwing Duck grunted in annoyance as he watched as the four villains got away. At least he had managed to keep them from getting the machine they had been after, but they had still gotten away. That fact alone angered the shorter mallard greatly.

He stood out in the hallway, outside the room the crime had taken place, his hands on his hips and tapping his webbed foot on the marble floor. "Well, that's just great!" he grumbled sarcastically. "Don't bother poking fun Gos, I KNOW I shouldn't have slipped on Quackerjack's banana peel. I KNEW he was gonna use it and he DID! You DON'T have to remind me!" He crossed his arms in aggravation.

There was an awkward silence that followed since Darkwing had been expecting his spirited daughter to have a sly comeback to his rant but there was nothing. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't heard from her since they had been up on the roof.

That was when it finally dawned on him. He uncrossed his arms as the thought made its way through his mind. Where was Gosalyn? Had something happened to her? Had he been so wound up in trying to catch Negaduck and his goons that he didn't even stop to think about what may have happened to his daughter!? A shiver then ran down the mallard's spine as he realized something else. Bushroot had not been there with the other four after they went inside. The vigilante whined quietly to himself as he slapped himself on the forehead. "How could I have forgotten?!"

Now filled with worry, nerves, and anger towards himself, he ran over to the nearest window and brought out his hook-shot, where he climbed out of the window, shot it at the next building's roof, and starting to climb up. As he did so, he inwardly berated himself. 'Honestly, how could I have been so stupid!?' he asked himself bitterly. 'If anything happens to her, I'll never forgive myself!'

It was time to find Gosalyn and he had a hunch on where she was.

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Green and brown blurs passed by Bushroot's glazed over eyes as he sat motionlessly on one of Dandren's large branches. His plant army, or -Dandren's plant army, he should say- were making their way closer and closer to the city of St. Canard. The large trees that were about the size of Dandren stomped their way through the grassy hills that surrounded his greenhouse.

The floral bird paid no mind to any of this.

Bushroot's eyes saw nothing as he stared off into space, one of his leafy hands unconsciously running through Gosalyn's hair in an effect to both calm his nerves and soothe the passed out duckling. In his arms, lay an unconscious Gosalyn.

Shortly after the declaration of war from Dandren, Bushroot had found Gosalyn lying outside in the mud through the glass of his Greenhouse. He had instantly acted and collected her, much to his large companion's chagrin. Demanding that his master be kept safe, Dandren insisted Bushroot stay up in his branches. The scientist had agreed and climbed up with Gosalyn in his arms, never letting go.

Dandren had started walking, sensing that his master was no longer going to resist them and summoned all of his fellow plants to start heading their way towards St. Canard.

A heavy step of one of Dandren's roots caused Bushroot to snap out of his thoughts and glance over at his greenhouse as it went by his line of sight. He had then turned his head towards the ground and there, laying in a heap in the mud and rain sat Gosalyn, her face facing the ground.

He wasn't a medical doctor, but he knew enough to check if she was breathing, which she was to his relief, and to check her pulse and make sure her body wasn't overreacting to the crash through the glass. Minor cuts and bruises were the only thing Bushroot could see on her. He wondered if there was a type of aloe plant that would help her.

Looking down at her now, Bushroot could see that she was no where near waking up. She appeared to have a nasty bump on her forehead. It was all for the better, for he knew she would only cause more problems as she tried to get away. Closing his eyes, Bushroot tried to forget where he was and that none of this was happening.

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It was lightly raining as four dark figures walked through the alleyways. A cat in a trash can hissed as they went by, dodging a bolt of electricity that didn't come from the weather.

Megavolt grumbled angrily towards the retreating cat. "I hate cats" he growled. He then looked up at the sky. "And I hate rain!" He pulled the battery on his back to his chest so he could examine it. "This keeps up, I'm gonna short circuit!" The rain began to pour down harder as he said this, as though to mock him. There was a popping sound and suddenly Megavolt was convulsing and shouting out in pain. He landed on in a heap on the hard filthy concrete of the alleyway. "D'oh! Spoke too soon!"

Looking down at his sparking friend, Liquidator spoke up. "I, myself, happen to like the rain. It leaves an interesting sensation when it lands on me." He held out his palm and watch

Megavolt, who was now shivering from the lack of electricity in his body, stood up. "No one cares, Drippy!"

Quackerjack walked up next to Megavolt and watched one one of his companion's whiskers glow at the very end of it in the form of a small spark. He pressed his thumb and index finger over it, putting it out as he enjoyed the tiny zap of electrocution that he was far from used to. "My, Megsy, you look absolutely singed...hehe!"

"You KNOBS!" screamed Negaduck suddenly from where he was walking behind them. This made the three of them flinch and turn around to look at their furious boss. "Would you JUST SHUT UP! If you would stop your yappin' for more than a few minutes, I MIGHT be able to concentrate!"

They all watched Negaduck in surprise and fear, waiting for him to continue. "Don't forget the other part of tonight's plan. If Bushy did as he was told, he should be at his greenhouse torturin' that little punk of a kid who's always hangin' around with Dorkwing."

"I can't imagine Reggie torturing anything, let alone a little girl" scoffed Megavolt, as he checked the condition of his battery.

Liquidator was the only one who looked genuinely concerned for the mutant plant duck. "I'm surprised you gave him that job at all. You know that's not his specialty, Negs."

Negaduck sneered at the liquid canine. "That's why I gave it to him. I wanted to see what he would do. I've been getting the impression that Bush Brain has been getting soft on us. I wondered how he would react to such a job." He started walking again, pushing past his fellow villains. The others followed in hot pursuit.

"You don't think he's going to betray us, do you?" asked Liquidator. Negaduck spun around so quick, Liquidator fell out of his dog form in a splash to get out of Negaduck's way. It was alarming to suddenly see the murderous glare of Negaduck shoved into your face. Liquidator morphed back into his regular form.

"I don't know, Liquidator! What do YOU think!? You're the one who's closest to him! You're the one who spends the most time with him! Why don't you tell me? Is that little weakling of a sapling going to turn on us and quit the Fearsome Five!?" snarled Negaduck.

Liquidator's cerulean eyes widened at the thought of his sweet Bushroot leaving the group. He hated the feeling of dread filling his chest as his mind told him the exact answer. Yes, he could see it happening. He could see his boyfriend turning on them in the hopes of starting over and turning over a new leaf. Bushroot was not cut out to be a proper villain. He had angry, vengeful tendencies, sure, but that didn't make him a villain worthy of being a member of the Fearsome Five.

Seeing that Negaduck was clearly waiting for a response, he gurgled out, "It's a possibility..."

Negaduck glanced down at the concrete before looking back up at Liquidator with an even angrier expression. He pointed a warning finger at him. "Then I suggest you two have a little chat and clear his head of all those thoughts. Otherwise Bushroot is going to be burning to a crisp! Do you understand me!?"

Liquidator pushed back the urge to wince and flinch and instead nodded. "I understand." He sighed, knowing that was not a conversation that was going to go well.

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An assortment of plants were now slowly making their way towards the city of St. Canard. Particularly the trees and larger flowers. Dandren tromped his heavy roots to the ground with each step he took, getting closer and closer to his goal to make his master happy.

A nearby peach tree kicked over a bench near the park, shivering its leaves with excitement over the damage it caused to the bench. Flowers that had grown three times their normal size were bending the lamp posts, making them come shattering down. The lights in the lamps sputtered a few sparks before dying out.

Everything seemed to be going Dandren's way. He could hear from his telepathy that the indoor house plants in the nearby area were doing as ordered; starting to grow and cause havoc within the homes of their prey. Soon all of St. Canard would pay for treating the plant world so harshly. It was time Mother Nature fought about against the arrogant lives of the people. They would once again reign over the land that had been taken over by animal population.

It wasn't until a small voice spoke to Dandren, did he stop feeling so confident. The little voice that had always meant so much to him when he heard it. The voice of his master.

Bushroot, still in his dazed stupor as he continued to cradle Gosalyn, once again tried to protest. "Please Dandren! I beg of you! Stop this madness!"

Dandren, hating to hear his master's voice so troubled, seemed to be conflicted. His leaves shivered as he thought things over. For years, he's listened to Bushroot's secrets, concerns, and more importantly, his heart.

Shortly prior to his mutation, Bushroot had bought Dandren at a local floral shop. He found that the little tree was in need of a nice home. Instead of picking out the usual flower that someone else would to have in their home, Bushroot thought it would be nice to find a small tree to keep inside for a while, until it was large enough to be transplanted outside.

It was then that Dandren started listening to Bushroot's concerns and heartaches. Long before he had been given the name Dandren, the large tree felt a connection between himself and Bushroot. Or rather; Reggie. At the time, he was referred to more as Reggie, than Bushroot.

Reggie had never been one to have friends; being so shy and socially awkward. His dedication to his work had not helped either; as inspiring and endearing as it was. He'd had the habit of talking to himself, which allowed Dandren to listen. Just after the mutation, Reggie had moved his home to the greenhouse and started living there permanently. With the help of his master's abilities, Dandren grew quickly to the size he was now, and with the aid of their telepathy, Dandren made sure that he was there for his master at all times.

After the mutation and realizing his telepathy with plants, Bushroot started to talk back to Dandren and the two became close friends. With the aid of his growth, came a stronger voice that allowed his voice to stand out louder than all the other plants. Due to this, he was able to have long winded conversations with the scientist; while other plants just said little short ended conversations since they lacked the attention span. Unlike Spike, who also have a stronger connection to Bushroot, Dandren had a more mature disposition rather than one a dog would have.

Now, however, just when Dandren believed he was doing his master a great deed, his master was begging him to stop.

'I do not understand you anymore, master. You have changed. There was a time when you would have loved the idea of terrorizing the city and getting back at all who tormented you.'

Bushroot frowned deeply at his words, soaked to his core thanks to the pouring rain. Regarding Gosalyn in his arms, he tried not to lose grip of her by pulling her closer to himself as he retaliated back. "I haven't changed! I just don't want anyone of you to get hurt! You guys are all I have now and I don't want to lose any of you!"

'I still say you once would have loved this' spat Dandren.

It was then that they heard it. The maniacal voice that gave Bushroot shivers whenever he heard it off guard. "BUSHROOT!"

Leaning over and looking around Dandren, Bushroot spotted the familiar form of Negaduck standing several yards away from where Dandren was tromping his way through.

"What the hell are you doing!?" demanded Negaduck, having to scream over the loudness of the plants shifting and moving and rain around them. "You were SUPPOSED to be torturing that girl! Not taking your plants for a walk!"

Bushroot could now see Liquidator not far behind Negaduck. Stuttering for words, Bushroot tried to figure out what to say. "I-I -This isn't MY doing! My plants won't listen to me!" he cried back urgently.

Negaduck gave a look of confusion for a split second before it turned back into sheer anger. "Well isn't that a shame?" he mocked. "Stop them anyhow!"

The rain started to lessen as Dandren stopped walking, much to Bushroot's surprise. The other plants stopped along with him, settling themselves until they once again looks like any regular plant in the park. Liquidator, meanwhile, had eyes only for Bushroot; tyring his best to see him through the branches.

Bushroot and Liquidator made eye contact, both of them wanting to say things but both looked away. Taking his chance, Bushroot jumped down from Dandren's branch and made his way down as quickly through the mass of plants as he could while still holding into Gosalyn. His roots then stumbled over to Negaduck, who was waiting impatiently. Bushroot held out Gosalyn to him. "See? I still have the girl. Don't worry. I just got distracted by my plants, is all. You see-they want to-"

SLAP!

Bushroot crashed to the ground, Gosalyn's unconscious form crashing on top of him. A red-hot pain formed over his left side of his beak as he reached up to touch it, his eyes wide with shock. Dandren, clearly angry at the movement, shivered its branches threateningly though it seemed to go unnoticed since it could have been mistaken for a large gust of wind blowing by. Negaduck had punched him!

Liquidator sloshed forward as though in a silent protest but Negaduck's quick warning glare at him kept him from saving or doing anything else.

"I don't give a damn about your plants!" seethed Negaduck slowly, turning to glare mercilessly down at Bushroot. "I gave you an order and you failed to fullfil it! Which to me, it seems, is how it always is with you! Frankly, I've had enough of you and your plants, Bushy! You make me sick! You make me want to throw up just at the mere sight of you, you shriveling heap of compost!"

Bushroot shivered on the ground, waiting for Negaduck's anger to break. Waiting for the moment when his boss would tire of screaming at him and move on to his next victim. But it didn't seem to be the case this time. Tonight, he was Negaduck's one and only victim.

"I'll take the girl, you pathetic weed!" sneered Negaduck, leaning down to pick up Gosalyn. As he did this, a puff of purple smoke began to rise from the ground several feet away from them.

They looked towards the smoke, knowing what was to happen next.

"I am the terror that flaps in the night!" came Darkwing's voice. His cape could now be seen through the smoke. "I am the grass stain that refuses to come out of your clothes! I...am Darkwing Duck!"

Negaduck, who had forgotten about picking up Gosalyn during Darkwing's appearance, gritted his teeth and straightened up. "Well, if it isn't Dorkwing Dip. Is there something amiss Dorkwing? Something missing from your usual, bumbling antics?"

Darkwing didn't bother replying to the jibe, his mind only on saving his little girl blue. He had already pulled out his gas gun and aiming it at Negaduck by the time is look-a-like had started talking. "I'm not in the mood for your games tonight Negs, just give me Gosalyn!"

"Oh, you mean the girl?" teased Negaduck ruefully. He picked up Gosalyn by her foot, dangling her upside down.

As she was lifted out of Bushroot's grip, she began to wake. Gosalyn opened her eyes, upside down, and mumbled blearily, "What happened...?"

Bushroot was still on the ground, still stung by the punch Negaduck had dealt him. He glanced over at Liquidator, who met his gaze as they both shared of look of concern.

"Put her down Negaduck!" spat Darkwing. "I'm warning you!" He pulled out his gas gun and aimed it at Negaduck.

Negaduck gave a shrewd laugh. "Warning me?! Don't make me laugh, Darky! Why, I could have you-" Negaduck stopped speaking as a heavy thromping sound began. Negaduck slowly looked behind him, still holding a dazed Gosalyn. He looked over to the tree that was still behind Bushroot. His eyes widened when he noted that the tree had begun to move.

Dandren leaned over, bending his trunk and snatched Gosalyn out of Negaduck's stunned hand. Dandren then tossed Gosalyn like a rag doll over to Darkwing. Darkwing cried out in alarm when he saw his daughter get tossed and scrambled to catch her. "I've got you, Gos!" With an 'oomph' sound, Darkwing landed on his rear, the wind knocked out of his lungs. But he had caught Gosalyn. He pushed himself up a bit and bent down to check if she was okay. "Gos, sweetie?" he whispered to her. Gosalyn struggled to get her bearings, having not fully awoken from the last time she'd been tossed. She looked up to see who's lap she was in and smiled widely when she saw it was her dad.

"Dad!" she breathed in happily as she let herself sink into his loving embrace and bury her face in his chest. Darkwing tenderly ran a hand through her wet hair, happy to have her back.

After recovering from the initial shock, Negaduck turned an evil glare at Bushroot and demanded, "What the hell is your problem!? Who's side are you on!?"

Bushroot tried looking at anywhere but Negaduck. He glanced at Liquidator for support, but the liquid canine only stared back with wide confused eyes. Bushroot pulled down on his petals. "I tried to tell you earlier! I can't control my plants anymore! I didn't tell Dandren to do that!?"

Liquidator spoke up, snapping out of his confusion. "Wait, so Dandren is doing whatever he wants? I thought it was strange that he was outside the Greenhouse at all when I saw you earlier."

Negaduck looked between the two of them. "Who the hell is Dandren and what does he have to do with any of this?!"

Liquidator pointed to Dandren. "That tree that just snatched the girl from you. That's Dandren. It's the tree's name."

Negaduck gave Liquidator a dead pan stare as though he had just spoken a different language. "Wait, its the tree?! The tree has a damn name!?" Negaduck stomped his feet in anger. "You've all gotta be kidding me! What is this, a Saturday morning cartoon? And why the hell would it NOT listen to you, Bushbrain? You're supposed to be the Plant Guru here! You're lying to me!" He aimed this accusation at Bushroot, who flinched.

Darkwing, who seemed to have been forgotten by the villains, took this moment to use his gas gun on them. "Saturday cartoon or not, Negs, you and your evil schemes shall be stopped!"

At the onslaught on smoke from the gun, Negaduck began oughing and sputtering and caught off guard. He quickly found himself bound together as a rope wrapped around them. Liquidator seemed disinterested in his bosses' capture as he sloshed his way over to Bushroot. Neither mutants had been effected by the gas gun's effects.

Liquidator gently ran a hand over the spot on Bushroot's beak that Negaduck had punched. He opted to ignore the flinch he received from the touch. "Reggie, what's going on?"

Bushroot shook his head. "I don't know, Bud. I really don't! It's all true! Everything is becoming last year's fertilizer and I hate it!"

Darkwing triumphantly looked down at the scowling Negaduck sitting on the ground, loving every moment. He looked at his gas gun fondly. "Yep, yep, yep! Nothin' like elastic rope in a gas gun. It does wonders, as you can tell." He leaned down to gloat in front of Negaduck's face. "Now, I don't know what is going on, but it looks like your time is up, Negs."

Negaduck snickered. "You may think that Dorkwip, but you're not the only one with nifty little tricks." He shuffled one of his hands inside his coat pocket and pulled out a small little ball; almost like a marble. He dropped it and with it produced another thick cloud of smoke. Darkwing opened his eyes to see that Negaduck was gone.

"DRAT! He's gone!" grumbled Darkwing though coughs. Coughing to clear his lungs of the gas, Darkwing looked over to see Launchpad holding a shivering Gosalyn, who looked ready to pass out again. Launchpad held her protectively in his large arms. He looked to Darkwing apologetically. "Sorry, DW, I tried to get here as soon as possible."

"That's okay, LP" he said fondly. "At least you came at all."

"Uh...What about them, DW?" inquired Launchpad as he tilted his head in Liquidator and Bushroot's direction. Darkwing glanced over at the other two villains, who didn't seem aware that he was still there. Both of them were talking; Liquidator helping Bushroot to his roots.

Darkwing scowled lightly before walking over to them.

Liquidator, sensing him presence, turned and growled at him. "Watch it, hero" he gurgled threateningly. "This Branded Water is ready to wash away any and all pests from the stock market."

As the two of them shared a glaring contest, Bushroot's small voice broke the silence. "Just leave me alone!"

Liquidator and Darkwing looked down at the upset form of Bushroot, who was wrapping his arms around himself as though trying to make himself look smaller.

Liquidator stepped forward. "Reggie? You just leave Darkwing to me-I'll handle him-"

"No!" snapped Bushroot in a rushed anxious tone. He didn't seem to be fully aware of what he was saying. "Just go! Both of you go away! I didn't mean to do it alright? So just leave me alone." There was very little emotion in his voice.

Liquidator opened his mouth to protest, wanting nothing more than to wrap his arms and Bushroot and hold him close.

Though it was Darkwing who spoke up. "From what I saw, you did nothing" stated Darkwing. He glanced back at Launchpad and Gosalyn. "Which I hear, is what you normally do at the crime scene. Nothing."

Bushroot didn't reply. It had stopped raining at this point, and the sun was trying hard to peek out for the last few moments of sunset. "However, I want to know what has been going on with all these crazy plants of yours. What are your motives here, Bushy? Trying to tear the city apart?"

Liquidator scowled at Darkwing. "All salesmen know the fine print doesn't have to be read aloud! That's for the consumer to worry about later! So, basically, don't say anything, Reggie!"

Darkwing frowned at the liquid canine. "Look, Drip Brain! I'm just doing my job! You gotta problem with that?"

"As a matter of fact, I do!" snarled Liquidator.

Both of them looked as though they were about to start fighting when Bushroot said in a quiet voice: "I'm not planning on doing that. Dandren is." Bushroot raised his arm up and pointed to Dandren with his leaf-hand.

Darkwing took a step back, surprised at the answer. The enormous tree, Darkwing hated to admit, was quite intimidating due to its size. "This tree is planning all this? Not you? Don't make me laugh Bushy, everyone knows you and you alone can control these plants" scoffed Darkwing.

"Uh not to bother you again, DW but Gos is starting to come around" piped up a nervous-sounding Launchpad. Darkwing looked back to see his friend looking down at his daughter who was in his arms; his face filled with concern. Darkwing walked back to check on her, feeling her forehead and pulse as Launchpad lowered her a bit for his reach.

Gosalyn groaned, cracking her eyes open to see the blurry face of her father. "My head hurts."

Darkwing nodded, already switching over to protective, overly concerned dad mode. He slowly stepped forward, running a hand along her cheek. His back was towards the mutants as he spoke quietly. "I'll bet it does. We'll be getting you out of this rain and inside where its warm. You'll catch your death out here!" He pushed aside some of her sweaty bangs from her face, before urging Launchpad to turn around to head home.

Bushroot then spoke up again, pushing away Liquidator's hand as the canine tried to comfort him once more . "Just leave me alone, alright? You have Gosalyn back, now leave me alone!" grunted Bushroot as he tried walking on unsteady roots.

"Come on, DW. We'd best get Gos home" suggested Launchpad.

The vigilante seemed to be caught between being Darkwing and being Drake. His fatherly instincts were telling him Launchpad was right and he needed to get Gosalyn home immediately. He was pretty sure he saw some cuts on her arms that needed seen to. At the same time, his Darkwing side wanted to stay and question Bushroot further.

After a moment of inner turmoil as he fought both sides of himself, he nodded. "Fine, let's go, LP." He then added to Bushroot, "But don't think you've won, Bushroot!"

The two of them ignored the villains as Darkwing started pulling off his jacket and wrapping it around Gosalyn, leaving him in his teal turtle neck sweater.

Seeing that they were leaving, Liquidator leaned in closer to Bushroot, who was wobbling to gain balance on his root feet. He laid a gentle hand on Bushroot's vine-like arm to steady him. Bushroot groaned and tried to push him away; his dazed mind just wanting everyone to go away. "Shh, come on, Reggie. It's just me. Your Buddy."

Bushroot blushed as he felt Liquidator kiss him lightly on the cheek.

"Reggie, you need to tell me what's going on. You haven't been yourself the last few days. You've barely been talking to me" began Liquidator in a slightly frustrated tone. "What is going on?"

"I don't know, Buddy" replied Bushroot softly. "I'm just so tired of everything. Everyone is telling me what to do and telling me how I should be feeling and I'm tired of it! I just want everything to go back the way it was! I don't want to have to worry about committing crimes so Negaduck doesn't saw me in half! I'm tired of Dandren and all my plant friends telling me what to do and how I should be feeling! I'm tired of Darkwing and all of society judging me! And I'm tired of feeling like I'm not good enough to be dating you!" Bushroot clasped his hands over his beak at the last confession, worried eyes instantly turning to see Liquidator's reaction.

Liquidator's eyes widened, then softened and lowered till they were half lidded. "Oh, Reggie. Always worrying about the littlest things. Always doubting yourself. I've always told you that you have so much potential to be an amazing person! An even more amazing person than you already are!" He leaned in closer and held a finger underneath Bushroot's chin so that the floral mallard was looking at him in the eyes. "And I love you just the way you are, Reggie."

"Would you love me if I weren't a super villain?" His question was spoken so softly that Liquidator almost didn't hear him.

The canine raised both of his ears in inquiry and alarm; looking uncomfortable with the question. "Why? Are you thinking about quitting the Fearsome Five?"

It didn't go unnoticed that Liquidator didn't answer his question. Bushroot turned away.

When Liquidator realized he wasn't about to get a reply, he continued, "How exactly do you plan to live without being a criminal, Reggie? We're not exactly capable of going out into society and getting a job and a house like everyone else. We're mutants, Reggie." Liquidator stepped in front of Bushroot. "Look, I know you don't like it, but its fact."

Bushroot winced, knowing it was true. But he didn't want it to be. "Don't you ever wish we didn't have to be criminals though?"

Liquidator looked as though he was about to answer when a stinging hot pain shot through Bushroot's head. "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" screamed Bushroot as he clutched his head tightly in pain, squirming around on his feet, and nearly falling over. He began to wonder if his head was going to explode. The stinging. The sharp, almost electrifying stinging he was feeling in his mind was horrible.

Darkwing and Launchpad, who had just began to walk away, quickly turned around to see what the commotion was. They were stunned into silence as they watched Bushroot writhe in torment by an invisible pain. Without hesitation, Darkwing ran back over, leaving Launchpad to stay with Gosalyn. "Hey, what's going on!?" he demanded them.

Liquidator held Bushroot by the shoulders, trying his hardest to soothe Bushroot. "Shh, Reggie, it's okay! I'm here! Tell me what's wrong!"

'I'm sorry, Master. But maybe this will clear your senses. I didn't want to have to force you master, but it now seems that I have no choice.'

The stinging pain subsided and Bushroot feel to his knees, still clutching his head as he felt the pain go away. Panting, Bushroot tried to collect himself and managed to sit up. Between breaths, he said, "See? I told you. My plants-my friends. They don't listen to me anymore." He leaned into Liquidator's open arms, who was now kneeling, his forehead resting on the watery canine's chest. Liquidator ran a cool soothing hand through his petals.

"Eh...This...isn't a trick, is it?" Darkwing asked uncertainly as he looked down the mutant plant duck with a concerned raise of an eyebrow. He thought back to what Launchpad and Gosalyn had been saying for days now and he hated to admit it: but it seemed they had been right after all. It had to have been true. Why would the plants hurt Bushroot? Didn't he control them?

"He's telling the truth, dad" Gosalyn called over from Launchpad's arms. Darkwing whirled around to look back at his daughter. "The same thing happened to me! That large tree hit Bushroot then hit me. It threw me through a window. There's something wrong and it's not Bushroot's doing!" Her explanation came out slowly, since she was so out of it and tired. Sighing, Darkwing nodded.

He turned back to Bushroot and Liquidator just in time to see Dandren pick up the scientist roughly by the waist with two branches and swing another large one at Liquidator, causing the ex-salesman to dodge and let go of Bushroot. Just as Darkwing was about to try and use his hook-shot to get Bushroot, Dandren took his roots and turned around, making the others tremble with the ground at every step like mini-earth quakes.

Not knowing what else to do, Darkwing gave up. He glanced at Liquidator. "Good luck with that one, Drippy" he said honestly. He turned back to his friends and spoke to them. "I don't know what to do. But for now, let's get you home, little missy" he said, taking Gosalyn into his own arms. Gosalyn only nodded, not having the strength to argue.

Liquidator had hardly heard Darkwing's comment. He was too busy seeing red. "Dandren!" shouted Liquidator angrily. "Give Reggie back! He didn't do anything!" Without further ado, Liquidator trailed after the quickly retreating tree; having a score to settle. He tried extending his liquid arms out to grab Bushroot himself, but Dandren was a large tree with thick strong branches. The leaves of every branch making a barrier that he couldn't get through.

The moonlight was starting to shine through the dissipating clouds, since the sun had long since set. The plant army had stopped. The plants did not return to the greenhouse, however; instead, they were waiting after sensing what had just happened.

Did you hear?

Did you hear what happened?

Master is not himself.

Not himself.

Something is wrong.

Yes, wrong.

The voices were back in his head again. Well, they never had left, he supposed. He had just stopped listening to them for a while. What was the point of trying to listen to the raving antics of the plants going off to war? A war which he wished wouldn't happen.

"DANDREN!" the furious shout of Liquidator shot through the air.

Dandren stopped a few yards away from the front door to Bushroot's greenhouse. The old and wise tree had always considered Liquidator a friend since he was so sweet and kind to his master. But not today. Oh, how he wished he could speak to the other mutant himself; but only his master could understand him.

Perched on one of his branches once again, Bushroot couldn't keep quite anymore. He had been in a daze before, but seeing as how Dandren was now keeping Liquidator from him, that just made him down right angry. He gave a pitying glance down at the canine in question, who he knew only wanted to help. "So, its gotten to the point where you are torturing me and keeping me from my loved one in order to get me to agree with you..." he snarled.

'I did not wish to. But your lack of interest forced me to.'

"Forced you to!? I didn't force you to do anything! If you treated me like the master you claim I am, we wouldn't be in this mess!" cried Bushroot, his voice unusually high.

'I am only doing what is in your best interest. I am only trying to save you from the evils of the world.'

"Saving me!? HOW!? By-by hurting me!? By keeping me away from Liquidator, who loves me!?"

'No, he doesn't'

Bushroot froze. His heart skipped a beat as he was forced to think of thoughts he hated to think. Doubts in his mind that seemed to always plague him. Dating Liquidator was a wonderful feeling, but at the same time, it was straining on his nerves. His anxieties. He always asked himself what Liquidator, formally known as the charming and handsome Bud Flud to the world of consumers, saw in him. What was he doing wasting his time around a pile of fertilizer like himself?

"You're lying! Yes, he does! If he didn't care about me, then why is he down there right now trying to figure out a way to get me back from you?!" countered Bushroot with a huff.

'He's only interested in you because you're a fellow mutant with great powers. He doesn't actually love you for you.'

"Oh, what do you know?!" snapped Bushroot as he curled up on the branch, bringing his knees up to his chest and wrapping his arms around them.

'Only everything you've come to share with me all these years. You came to me so many times claiming to have doubts of whether or not that man made of H2O really loved you or not. Or asking my why he loved you. You must have been given reasons to feel that way, master'

Unabashedly, Bushroot burst into tears at these words. His shoulders shook with sobs as he curled up into a ball. "Oh, son of a broccoli! Just shut up already!"

He had shouted so loud that even Liquidator had heard him several yards away. He looked up in shock when he heard Bushroot cursing. "Reggie! Ignore whatever that damn tree is saying to you!"

Bushroot gave his fellow mutant a brief small smile before focusing on Dandren. With a huff he said, ""It's no use, Buddy! He won't let me leave!" To prove his point, he began crawling to the end of the branch he was perched on, only to receive a face full of leaves and branches in his face. With a sigh, he pulled back to the spot he had been in. He called down to Liquidator. "Just go home, Buddy! There is nothing you can do and I don't want you wasting your time here. Dandren won't let me go until I let him have his way!"

Liquidator frowned, not liking the way Bushroot was sounding so defeated. "Every good salesman knows not to let the competition get you down! We all have our bad days, Reggie! When the stock market is low, you gotta keep increasing the value of your product!"

Bushroot shook his head, unable to keep the smile off his face at the euphemism. But his frown quickly returned. "Just go home, Buddy! You've been dating a nobody! Someone who has never belonged anywhere! You and I both know you wouldn't be happy if I stopped being a villain and we both know I don't want to be one. So, just make this easier on the both of us and go away!"

Liquidator looked as though he was even more determined to stay despite Bushroot's words. "No! Stop talking nonsense, Reggie! I'm not leaving you!"

Without warning, Dandren suddenly swung his whole body towards Liquidator, intending to wallop him. Liquidator dodged. What hurt the most was that Liquidator didn't know for sure if that was Dandren or if that had been Bushroot who told him to attack. Bushroot had been acting strange for weeks now and there was a time when he believed he knew Bushroot better than he knew himself; but now he wasn't so sure.

"Alright! I'll go!" relented Liquidator. "But this isn't over, Reggie!" He made his vow and turned reluctantly away, sloshing off into the evening.

'I am glad that you sent him away, master'

"You didn't have to try to hit him. I know he's made of water and he can't get hurt that way, but that's beside the point! He probably thinks I told you to do that!" groused Bushroot.

'The important thing is that he is gone'

There was a pregnant pause as Bushroot tried to gather his thoughts. He looked down into his leafy hands, trying to ignore the uncomfortable feeling in the pit of his stomach. He wished so badly that Liquidator was still there, holding him close. Buddy always had a way of making him feel better. But he wasn't there at the moment. He had sent him away. Because Buddy didn't understand what Bushroot was going through. The constant internal conflict that seemed to be have been growing worse and worse throughout the past few weeks. Now it was rearing its ugly head and Dandren was not making things any easier on him. He didn't want to be a villain, a criminal, or a monster. But sadly that was what the world had painted him as. But that didn't mean he had to be happy about it.

Quietly, Bushroot said out loud. "Well, what are you waiting for?"

'What, master?'

"Go ahead. Have your war. I don't care anymore. Go on. I don't care what you do anymore" he sniffed as he felt tears come to his eyes at the confession and rubbed at his eyes. It was useless for him to do so, for more tears kept coming. It was true though; he didn't care. He was tired of fighting and he just wanted everyone to go away. There was even a chance that he and Liquidator had just broken up, or at least were on the verge of doing so. That just made his heart break at the very thought. He turned over on his side, and rested his head against Dandren's trunk. "Just go what you want."

'I am thrilled to see you have agreed. I just wish you weren't so reluctant in your agreement. We had hoped you would more enthused once your agreed.'

Bushroot sighed, closing his eyes. "I don't care anymore. Destroy everything. I don't care. Just leave me alone."

'Alright, master. We shall continue with our war. I just hope you realize how proud we are of you for finally agreeing with us.'

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	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

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The eerie sound of a low rumble shook the through the streets of St. Canard as thick vines twisted and turned their way along the streets, curving and slinking up the buildings, making cars come to abrupt stops, bending over street lamps, and crushing anything in their paths.

Trees thromped their own way through the city, destroying anything they stepped on. Crashing into benches, slamming their branches into store windows. Breaking loose the fire hydrants. Flowers three times their regular size wrapped themselves around innocent victims. Everyone was screaming and panicking as the plants all attacked the city, only adding more to the chaos. Those who were unable to get out of their cars in time shouted for help and prayed they wouldn't get crushed further. Men and woman alike fled for their lives, not knowing what else to do as they came back home from a long day at work.

A peach tree was playing baseball with a fellow Douglass Fir Tree, taking its peaches and throwing them, allowing the Douglass Fir to hit it into the windows of apartment buildings and stores windows alike.

In one of the many dark alleys in the city, three sets of eyes watched warily as the plants took over. They made sure not to be seen themselves, already having to leave three of their 'hiding' places so far due to the rampaging plants.

"This is ridiculous!" hissed Negaduck, his red fedora hat being twisted and crinkled in his hands as he used to it to ease some of his current frustrations. "Of all the ways this city is to go down, I never would have thought Bushy and his nasty little plants would have done it!"

"I don't care about any of that, all I know is that he's hogging Playtiiiiiime!" whined Quackerjack as he pulled down on his hat. "No fair! No faaaaaiiiirrrr!"

Megavolt watched helplessly from the sidelines as several roots tore down a nearby street lamp, causing the light bulb inside of it to shatter upon impact of the concrete. He winced. "Poor Bulbsy!" he whimpered before giving out a small snort of annoyance.

His crazed mismatched eyes hidden behind purple goggles turned to the vine responsible for the death of the light bulb. "Say, anyone in for some steamed vegetables? I'm tired of watching them kill innocent light bulbs!"

Blue electrical sparks began to crackle around Megavolt's gloved hands when a yellow arm shot out in front of him. "Save it!" hissed Negaduck.

Megavolt stopped immediately, his eyes wide as he stared at his boss.

Negaduck glared out into the streets that were being attacked. "There is only one vegetable we'll be cooking and its not these ones!"

"I wonder what got into him?" pondered Megavolt. "Bushy's never been the type to pull something like this off before. Especially not without being told to by you."

Negaduck shook his head, his back turned to them. "I dunno, but its really pissing me off. No one plans something this big without me knowing first! How dare he try to pull something like this off without my permission!?" His large bill turned into an almost pouted frown. "It's MY job to take over the city!"

"What should we do then, Negs?" asked Quackerjack. He looked up along the brick wall of the alley way and watched as some vines snaked there way up to the very top of the building and hanging there. "Just hang around and watch the weeds grow?"

"We lie low..." scowled Negaduck, watching as a giant apple tree thromped its way by, ducking just in time from getting hit by one of its swaying branches. He scowled, picking up his hat, which he had dropped in his haste. Beside it was an apple that the tree had dropped. He picked it up and sneered at the red fruit. "For now..."

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Launchpad looked out one of the windows of Audoben Bay Tower cringing as he watched from a distance as more plants worked their way through the city.

"Uh, DW?" he called out uncertainly to his companion. They were currently in the Tower, taking a short detour from crime fighting as they checked over Gosalyn's injuries. They were sitting on the couch near the kitchenette and little library. Gosalyn was struggling to get away from the cotton ball of antibiotics in her father's hand as Launchpad tried his best to hold her down as he stood behind the couch. Darkwing was kneeling in front of Gosalyn, trying his hardest to bandage up his daughter as he dipped more antibiotics onto a cotton ball.

Darkwing, who was trying to get Gosalyn to sit still to check over her wounds, grunted. "What?"

"Shouldn't you be out there...I don't know-Stopping those plants?" inquired the pilot.

Darkwing's frown deepened and in a slightly mocking voice, he replied, "Well I WOULD be, LP, but a CERTAIN little missy is making this harder than it needs to be!"

"I'm fiiiine, dad! Go and save the city! It's what you do!" She expertly dodged the band-aid in her father's hand.

Darkwing sighed and pulled back for a moment to say, "Not before I check to make sure you're okay, Gos! I won't be able to concentrate fully until I know you're all bandaged up and healing! HEY!" He just barely managed to catch Gosalyn before she tried jumping off the couch, pushing her back with more of his strength than he cared to admit. With a grunt, he looked up to Launchpad. "Mind giving me a hand here, LP?"

The pilot smiled and walked over to the back of the couch, where he gently but firmly placed his hands on Gosalyn's shoulders, ensuring that she couldn't get away.

Seeing that she was outnumbered, Gosalyn crossed her arms, wincing as another cotton ball of antibiotics touched a cut on the side of her head. "It's not Bushroot who's doing this, dad! I know its not! It's the creepy tree! He's not listening to Bushroot's orders anymore!" Her eyes went wide as the stinging pain of medicine was placed on another cut. "THAT HURTS!" she howled before starting her struggling anew. Launchpad struggled to keep hold of Gosalyn.

"But it's gotta be Bushroot! He's the only one who can control plants!" argued Darkwing.

"And I'm telling you-That tree is not under his control! He's gone rogue or something!" retaliated the young duckling.

Darkwing shook his head. "Impossible! The only reason those plants are able to move around like that to begin with is BECAUSE of Bushroot!"

Launchpad shrugged from where he was behind the couch. "I don't mean to sound like a broken record, DW, but this IS the same guy who saved Gosalyn on that roof the other night. Maybe there's more going on than we think."

"Yes, yes, but one good deed doesn't erase years of-" He stopped short as Gosalyn's foot scuffed him at the end of his large beak. "Hey, hey hey hey hey!" He dodged another kick from his daughter's foot as she struggled. One of her kick's nearly hit him in the face again. Darkwing narrowed his eyes and lowered eyelids to glare at her. "Has daddy ever told you the story about the little girl, the disinfectant, and year's worth of grounding?"

Gosalyn shot her father a pouted glare, ignoring him. "You keep that nasty stuff away!" groaned Gosalyn, glaring daggers as the cotton ball got closer. "That stuff stings!"

Darkwing sighed, finally able to get some on her cut for a brief moment before Gosalyn cried out in pain. He flinched, hating that it hurt her, but he knew it was for the best. "Of course it stings! It's antibiotics and its going to help you heal these cuts faster and keep them from getting infected!"

"But it STIIIIINGS!" wailed Gosalyn, turning her head away in defiance. Darkwing rolled his eyes at her dramatics and kept trying, not wanting to give up. He'd never be able to forgive himself if Gosalyn were to get sick from not cleaning her cuts properly.

"Think of it this way, Gos" piped up Launchpad, before Darkwing lost his patience. "This stuff will keep the cuts from bleedin' and gettin' worse. And if they get worse-"

"Daddy is going to throw a fit!" finished Darkwing. "Please, Gos" he sighed, putting down the cotton ball for a moment. He placed his hands gently on her knees and leaned in. "Am I really asking that much from you? Just hold still."

"But da-aaad! It hurts! I'm fine! Really! I've gotten more roughed up playing soccer and you've never made this big of a fuss!" pouted Gosalyn, giving up on struggling. She was getting more and more tired by the minute.

"This is different, Gos! You were tossed through a WINDOW, for cryin' out loud!" cried out Darkwing. He sucked in a deep breath and calmed himself down. He gave her a broken smile. "Look, Gos, I know it hurts, but there's nothing I can do about it. You're just going to have to be that tough little girl I know you are and bear through it. Give your old man a peace of mind and let me clean these cuts!" soothed Darkwing, seeing that he was finally going to win. He threw away the cotton ball he'd been using in a near by trash can and grabbed a fresh one out of a bag of cotton balls.

Gosalyn sighed, flinching at the remaining stings. Her eyes lowered as she bit back a yawn. " I still don't believe Bushroot is behind this" she mumbled, changing the topic back to the crime at hand. Her eyes were already closing as she was quickly losing the battle against sleep.

"Gee, DW, she sure is gettin' tired fast" indicated Launchpad, his brow stressed with worry. They both watched as Gosalyn fought against heavy eyelids to stay awake.

"Yeah, well you'd be sleepy too if you got tossed about like yesterday's newspaper..." she grumbled tiredly before slowly drifting off to sleep, her back resting on the cushions of the couch. Darkwing shook his head at her sassy comment, a fond smile on his beak.

"That's good. That means she'll sleep. And sleep is the best cure for healing" whispered Darwking. He looked down at his daughter and sighed. They had brought her home and changed her into her pajamas before coming to the Tower where they had more first aid supplies than the house on Avian Way. By that time, Gosalyn had woken up and Darkwing was trying to asses the cuts and bruises she now sported all over her body. It pained Darkwing to see so many bandages on her. From webbed feet to the top of her red head she had either nasty cuts or colorful bruises.

"Launchpad, I want you to stay with her. Watch over her, please" he knew he sounded desperate and meek, but he didn't care. "Watch over my baby girl." Launchpad nodded solemnly.

"You can count on me, DW!" replied the pilot softly, sitting down beside the red head. "But what are you going to do about the plants?"

Darkwing pulled down on his fedora hat, securing it further on his head. "I'm going to go straight to the source, of course!" He raised a finger in the air, beaming to himself for his cleverness. When he saw the blank look on Launchpad's face though, his smugness died down and he gave the pilot a deadpan expression. "Bushroot! I'm gonna go find Bushroot and confront him myself!"

Comprehension light up on Launchpad's face. "Ahh, good idea, DW! But uh, how do you plan on finding him?"

"Easy, LP! He'll be with that giant tree. I'm sure of it! The very place he's been cowering away in since this all began! But once he realizes that I'M on his trail, he'll be shaking in his roots!" announced the hero dramatically. Darkwing turned his attention back to his daughter and leaned down to kiss Gosalyn on the head, minding her cuts. She was now in a deep sleep. "I'll be back, sweetie. Daddy has to go out and some evil plants! LP will be here if you need anything!"As he turned to leave, his cape flapping behind him and leaving his family behind, he pulled down his hat and muttered darkly, "Now, I have a stubborn weed to deal with.."

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Dandren stood in the middle of the road in downtown St. Canard, watching as his fellow plants destroyed the city that belonged to those who shunned and hurt their master. Dandren was truly pleased that their master had finally given them permission to go to war. He had finally said that he 'didn't care'.

However, the large tree would have liked it better had his master been more enthused. Perhaps it was just himself being selfish, but he just had hoped to see his master up and going, ordering about his family, telling them what to do. Enjoying the moment with them.

Instead their master laid passed out on the same branch his master always was. It had not occurred to Dandren until just recently that their master had not slept since he'd brought up war to his master. He hoped that this was just too overwhelming for their master and he was learning how to handle it by sleeping.

'Master, you must wake up now. The seeds of our fruitful war is in full bloom. Please wake up.'

Dandren received no reply. This made Dandren nervous. He knew his master was alive, for he would have been able to sense it otherwise. Dandren could still 'hear' Bushroot with his telepathy, only his master just wasn't responding. It still made him nervous. Was he really in that deep of a sleep? Or was Bushroot simply trying to ignore the world altogether now? Was he trying to block him out of his mind? Dandren decided to try once more, only this time he took one of his smaller branches and gently prodded Bushroot in the side.

This got a reply from Bushroot, who moaned and tried swatting the branch away, muttering something about that tickling. Dandren saw his chance and took it.

'Master, please. It is time to get up. You have been sleeping for almost two hours now. You must look quickly! Look at the wondrous work of our family! Look at the destruction we are causing to those who have made you suffer so!'

Bushroot pushed himself up, rubbing his eyes. He sat up, looking dazedly at his surroundings. His eyes then widened in shock.

The entire city was being attacked by plants! They were everywhere! Plants were climbing up buildings, breaking windows, pushing over cars, chasing pedestrians who were still trying to get home and out of the chaos.

"What have you done!?" gasped Bushroot, placing his leafy hands on his temples.

'What do you mean, master? Is this not what you have been planning all this time? Revenge?'

"R-Revenge?" asked Bushroot dizzily, trying to make sense of all that was going around him.

'Yes. Revenge for those who made fun of you and forced you to live in loneliness. Haven't you been planning this the entire time to kill them?'

"K-Kill? I never had any plans to kill, did I!?" Bushroot asked himself as he tried to put everything together. He blinked and finally come out of his stupor. "NO! Killing was NEVER in any of my plans!" His voice kept getting higher and higher as he began to panic, starting to understand what Dandren's true plans were. He then started to ramble. "I-I mean, yes, I did kill G-Gary and L-Larson, but-I wasn't in my right head at the time! I was infuriated with them after they made me what I am today! They had humiliated me in front of-In front of the lovely Rhoda Dendren! Oooh, that had made me so very very angry! To the point of insanity, but never again afterwards had I EVER thought about killing again!"

'That is too bad, master. Because that is what I had assumed your plans were this entire time...'

"Why do you keep talking about my 'plans'!? When did I ever tell you anything about these 'plans'!?" demanded Bushroot, getting irritated.

'Over the years...Each and every time you came to me, your heart shattered over something those nasty people of the city did to you. Wether it was foiling your plans to make a bride, or to a make friend, to stop Christmas, or simply when you went to the store for supplies and were caught by that nasty purple crime fighter, who just assumed you were up to no good. Don't you remember all the times you came to me and shared with me your thoughts, wishes, and heartaches? That is when you spoke of your plans. Bits and peices of the plan each time you came to me, and now, here it is, in real life, my master.'

Bushroot's eyes widened. He remembered. Yes! So that is where Dandren was getting all this! From all of those angry, emotional talks they'd have after his plans were foiled or he'd had a problem he couldn't solve.

"Oh, boy..." moaned Bushroot, clutching his head. "I didn't-I was just angry at those times. I was venting out my frustrations! I-I didn't REALLY plan on doing any of that! You know-You really need to learn the difference between when I'm venting and when I"m being serious!"

'So, this has not been your plan the entire time?'

"No!" cried Bushroot, hoping that Dandren would finally understand and stop all of this nonsense.

'I am sorry, master. I have failed you. I will stop this war, now that I understand that it is not truly what you wished. I did this only because I believed that deep down, this is what you wanted to do.'

"Thank you! Thank you so much, Dandren! N-Now, let's go home before-" He had started to get up from his spot when he froze, his heart nearly stopping at the sound of a familiar voice.

"I am the terror that flaps in the night!" came a familiar voice. A puff of purple smoke appeared just next to Bushroot, making the plant-mutant cough. "I am the bug that eats at your plants. I...am Darkw-ing Duck!"

Bushroot opened his eyes to see none of than Darkwing Duck and he didn't look at all pleased. "There you are Bushy! You went one step too far when you ordered these plants to take over St. Canard! I may have been fooled at first with your little sympathy act, but not anymore, pal!" He pulled out his gas gun. "You are now going to pay! Suck gas, evil doer!"

"NO!" shouted Bushroot, stepping back. "I didn't do any of this! I SWEAR! I was telling the truth earlier! HONEST!"

"Then what about Gosalyn!? I have proof you hurt her!" bit back Darkwing.

Bushroot shook his head. "I didn't! I never intended for her to get hurt! You've gotta believe me! I've done nothing!"

"No? So you mean to tell me that kidnapping her and throwing her through a window is NOTHING!?" demanded Darkwing hotly.

"Well-I-I..." Bushroot was at a loss for words. He rubbed with brow, which was damp with sweat. "I'll admit to the kidnapping, but I didn't toss her through a window! I thought you understood me earlier, Darkwing! I told you before! I'm not doing any of this, my plants are!"

"Oh, and you'll just have me believe you that your plants are disobeying you? What would make them do that, hmm?" inquired the caped mallard, his gas gun still raised. "They've never done this before."

"A...A misunderstanding..." sighed Bushroot, hanging his head. "My plants all THOUGHT this is what I wanted them to do. But it's not, I swear!"

Darkwing stood there a moment, not sure what to do. He looked between Bushroot and the plants that were still destroying the city. Sneering at Bushroot he said, "You know, this does seem a bit strange and uncharacteristic for you, Bushroot. Perhaps you are telling the truth after all. But that still doesn't mean I'm not upset about what happened about Gosalyn!"

"The little girl? That's her name, right? Oh, I'm sorry about that. I really am. She seems so sweet. Is she really your daughter?" asked Bushroot.

Darkwing paled before he started laughing nervously. "My daughter?! Hah! Don't be silly, Bushy! I think you've had one too many shovel fulls of fertilizer! She's-She's not my daughter! She's my number one fan!"

"I heard you call you 'dad' just before I kidnapped her" admitted Bushroot quietly, knowing the hero was none too happy about him knowing. He made sure to keep his expression soft and sincere. He truly didn't want to hold that against Darkwing. Gosalyn had been so nice to him.

Darkwing's eyes widened before slapping himself on the forehead. "I told her not to call me 'dad' while I'm out fighting crime!"

Bushroot could do nothing but shuffle his feet and shrug. "She's a sweet kid. I promise not to tell anyone who she is."

Darkwing blinked, lowering his gas gun. That was not what he had been expecting to hear. "I uh...Thank you. I would appreciate that." He looked away, not sure what else to say.

Bushroot then frowned. "Darkwing, there's just one more problem."

Darkwing eyes him suspiciously. "Yeah? And what, pray tell, is that?"

"Well, see, Negaduck is sort of furious with me for all of this happening. He thinks this is all my doing too! And I have a feeling he's going to do something about it. What I'm trying to say is, I need help" replied Bushroot, wringing his hands together in worry.

"And this is my concern why?" as soon as the words left his bill, he regretted them. He winced as his own harshness.

A look of hurt was covering Bushroot's features. It was then that Darkwing noticed just how emotional his enemy's eyes could be. A dark blue filled with a depth like no other's he'd seen. They reminded him of an empty ocean.

Bushroot on the other hand just shook his head in annoyance. "I always thought you were there for anybody who needed your help Darkwing. Well, here I am! I need your help, and you dare ask me that? And you call yourself a hero?" his words were filled with bitterness as he turned around, crossing his arms.

Darkwing looked away, knowing the mutant duck was right. How could he call himself a hero if he wouldn't help everyone? That was his job! Darkwing looked away, pursing his lips. He hated it when he was proven wrong. Make a face he said, "But-You're a villain!"

Bushroot scoffed and crossed his arms. "Didn't stop you from dating Morgana!"

Darkwing felt his cheeks go hot. Stubbornly he said, "She's a REFORMED villain, if you MUST know, but I see what you're getting at!" He sighed. "You're right, Bushroot. I will help you. I guess, I'm just not used to helping my enemies." He offered out his hand, putting away his gas gun with the other, and grabbed a leafy hand to shake on it.

The floral mallard stared at the outstretched hand for a moment before taking it. "Thank you, Darkwing. You have no idea how much this means to me!" smiled Bushroot. "I'm really not so bad! I'm just misunderstood!"

"For your sake, that better be true!" Darkwing then spun around. "Now, you tell these plants of yours to stop and then we'll go and stop Negaduck from whatever he is up to." He then glanced back at Bushroot uncertainly. "You'll still be able to, right?"

Bushroot nodded. "Yes, Dandren should do as I say now."

'I will stop them now, master. I will explain to them what is going on. But only after we destroy this nasty thorn!'

Dandren quickly took one of his large branches and prepared to swing at Darkwing. "NOO!" cried Bushroot. He quickly ran in front of Darkwing, nearly falling off the thick branch, and was struck by the branch instead of Darkwing.

"Bushroot! What's going on!?" demanded Darkwing as he watched Bushroot get hit.

'Master! What are you doing!?'

"H-Help!" wheezed Bushroot as he clung onto Dandren's branch. Darkwing was about to help him when another one of Dandren's branches grabbed the mutant duck and placed him back on the branch.

"What is going on, Bushroot? This is madness!" the duck in purple asked again. "And-You just saved me from getting hit! I don't-Know how to say thank you..."

Bushroot lay there on his hands and knees, trying to catch his breath from the shock of being hit. He rubbed at a sore spot near his ribs where the branch had hit him. "No worries" he panted. "Dandren tried to knock you off and kill you and I don't understand why! He told me he would listen to me and I didn't order him to do that!"

"Bushroot, none of this is making sense! One minute you're trying to help me, the next you're trying to kill me! Talk about being bipolar!" whined Darkwing. "It's giving me a headache!"

'I want him out of the picture, master! He's trying to brainwash you, just as the girl did! You need to learn that there is no one else out there for you but the plant world and myself!'

Dandren began to get violent as he tried shaking Darkwing off his branches. This caused both mallards to lose their balance and fall to the ground in a heap. Bushroot could hear Dandren yelling at him to come back, but he grabbed Darkwing by the arm by instinct before darting off across the street to hide behind a wall of one of the buildings.

'Master! Master, come back! I didn't mean to chase you off too!'

Darkwing and Bushroot panted as they leaned against the brick wall. Seeing the mutant plant duck's inner turmoil written all over the other's face, Darkwing spoke up. "You know, Bushroot, if this Dandren is being that big of a hindrance to you, why don't you just get rid of him?" asked Darkwing. He ducked back as Dandren walked by, trying to find where they went. "Hoo boy, that was close...He almost found me..." He looked down to see Bushroot staring off into space. "Ummm...Bushroot?"

"That's it..." the floral mutant whispered, deep in his own thoughts. "That's it..." A small smile was playing on his beak. "That's it! I know what to do now!"

Darkwing just stared as Bushroot started laughing quietly to himself. He gave the other mallard a skeptic look. "Okaaaay."

Bushroot took in a deep breath. He knew what to do; he just hoped he could bring himself to go through with it.

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	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

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It had once again started to rain as the citizens of St. Canard finally received a moment of peace. It appeared that the attacking plants seemed to be slowing down. Frightened St. Canardians fearfully looked out their windows, whether it was at work, after having been trapped inside, or in their own houses.

The plants were gathering around in the middle of the city where Dandren had lost their master. Dandren waited for them all to come, happily looking around towards the damage he and his family had managed. He only wished their master was as pleased as they were.

'My fellow plants, we have a problem! It would appear that our master is still lost to us! He is still unable to see the great need of this war. Yes, he had agreed to it, and yes, he had allowed us to cause this wonderful damage, but he is still at a loss.'

'Master is still lost?'

'Master is lost!'

'We must help him!'

'Yes, find him!'

'Save him!'

'I am glad you all think so. For that is why I have brought everyone here. We must find our distraught master and bring him back to us! Once we do so we must make sure to take very good care of him as we desperately make him see things our way.'

'Distraught? Master is distraught?'

'Distraught, yes.'

'Poor master!'

'Now go, my friends, and find our beloved master!' cried Dandren, ordering them around in the absence of his master.

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Darkwing grunted as the rain continued to pour down on them, even in the alleyway, with no protection. He pulled down his hat, angrily looking about. If he didn't know that the villain's plants had decided to go against him, Darkwing would have placed the cuffs on the green fiend ages ago.

With angry pout, Darkwing eyed some of the plants that were walking by, thankfully leaving them undetected, and stage whispered, "How am I supposed to know this isn't just some grand scheme of yours, eh, Bushy? I mean, I've dealt with some pretty devious foes in my day and this could just be just another elaborate trick on your part!"

He glanced over at the green mutant when he didn't get a response, urging himself not to roll his eyes as he noticed that the duck was still standing there, leaning up against the wall, his eyes fixed on the cement in deep thought. He was just glad Bushroot wasn't still muttering to himself like he had been a moment ago.

"Ugh! Earth to Bushroot!" snapped Darkwing, starting to lose his patience. Bushroot looked up, his eyes wide as though he was just now realizing that Darkwing was still there.

"Oh!" he squeaked. "Sorry! Got a bit lost in though there. But uh- I figured out how to stop him!" Bushroot said with nervous glee. His blue eyes shone as he peaked around the other side of Darkwing to see the road beyond it.

"Care to share it with me?" grumbled Darkwing, hating that he was clearly out of the loop.

Bushroot opened his beak to do so, but nothing came out. His blue eyes turned to Darkwing. He tried again, "Well-" The vigilante just waited for the duck to say something, his face showing how unimpressed he was. "I'm going to get rid of Dandren.."

Darkwing blinked several times. "Yeah. I kinda figured that, Bushy. But HOW!? Besides, you're not exactly the most trustworthy in this case. You expect me to believe you're going to willingly kill a fellow plant?"

"Yes, I mean-ugh! I don't want to, but it appears it's my only option! If I don't, Dandren will just continue to pester me and never give upon this war until-" he dare not think of the extremes Dandren would want to make sure his master wasn't tormented anymore. He sighed heavily, shaking his head back and forth to get rid of the amount of water that was now clinging to his foliage. "Uh...I knew I should have been a science teacher..."

Darkwing grimaced at that, wondering how hard for it to be for the mutant to even consider killing a plant. He remembered the time whenever he had to get rid of his crazed potato bride that had gone berserk. He knew that hadn't been easy on Bushroot regardless of how much of a failure the actual plan had been. Or the fact that at one point he had planned to marry the baked potato on steroids.

Darkwing placed his hands on his hips. "Well, now what? We can't just sit here and wait for things to happen! We need to get moving! Follow me! "

Bushroot watched in bewilderment as Darkwing stepped out of the alleyway, before following him.

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Back up in the Tower, Launchpad had been tinkering with the Ratcatcher shortly after Darkwing left, figuring that with Gosalyn asleep, he may as well get some work done. He didn't find anything wrong with his plan until he heard the soft stirrings of Gosalyn on the couch.

"Gos? You awake?" he called out, coming out from being underneath the Ratcatcher.

"Yeah. Where's dad?"

"He went out to try and stop those nasty plants."

Gosalyn's eyes widened, her memory suddenly coming back to her. She pushed herself off the blankets that were on her and rushed over to the pilot. "Launchpad!" she cried, clinging onto Launchpad's pilot outfit. "It's Bushroot! He's not really bad, just like we suspected!"

"Woah, there, Gos! Calm down! We know that now! DW's not after Bushroot, he's just trying to set things straight. Although, I must say, he did look rather angry when he left. Seeing you all beat up really messed with him" explained Launchpad in the best way he could. He didn't want Gosalyn to get the wrong idea.

Gosalyn scoffed. "I can't look that bad." She checked her reflection in the rear view mirror of the Ratcatcher. "Keen gear! I look like I just got beaten up by a zombie!" Her excitement at the concept of looking like a zombie vanished quickly. "No wonder dad is upset. I'd better go and find him and let him know I'm okay!" Just as she'd said these words, she gave out a great sneeze that nearly had her fall backwards.

The tall duck took action. "Oh, no you don't! DW told me to keep you right here where I can keep an eye on you!" Launchpad countered, picking her up and trying to put her back on the couch.

Of course, she didn't take this lightly. "Nonsense! I'm fine!" she resisted, knowing she sounded terrible. Though a second later she sneezed three times in a row. She looked up at Launchpad with a sheepish expression. She knew she was getting a cold, or probably already had one, but since when did that keep her from doing what she wanted? "Okay, okay, fine! Maybe I SHOULD stay here!"

Launchpad beamed at her response. "That's some good thinkin' there, Gos!"

She allowed him to place her on the couch, wrapping the blanket around her. She smiled up at him and he smiled back. Though just as Launchpad was underneath the Ratcatcher again, she saw her chance and ran towards the nearest exit.

Hearing the door shut behind her, Launchpad called out, "Gos? Was that you?" When he didn't get a response, he got up and headed over to the couch. He saw that it was empty and smacked himself on the forehead. "Boy, that girl is a handful..."

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The rain insisted on falling as the night wore on, never allowing a chance of rest. The shadows of Darkwing and Bushroot crept over the walls and sidewalks that they passed as the few lamps posts that hadn't been pummeled to the ground continued to shine.

"So, where exactly are we going now?" asked Darkwing.

"I need to go back to Dandren. I need to-you know..." he wasn't even able to say it. It went against his every fiber just thinking about it.

"So, what exactly was the point of leaving Dandren to begin with!?" seethed Darkwing. "Because, frankly, Bushroot, I'm getting pretty tired of following a talking begonia bush!"

Bushroot rolled his eyes. He stopped and whirled on the vigilante. "Look, I'm a Lyceum Nycanthropis! I look NOTHING like a begonia! If you're going to insult me, at least insult me correctly!"

Darkwing growled and pulled down on the sides of his fedora hat. "Whatever! Just tell me why we leave that walking Tree Hulk to begin with!"

"I wasn't sure of my plan then, alright!? Besides, Dandren was ready to make us both into pancakes..."He turned to the hero and shrugged. "Well, you at least..."

Darkwing growled under his breath as they walked past another alleyway. "Believe me, I KNOW! I was THERE!"

The two of them were about to turn a corner when Bushroot suddenly felt the air in his lungs push out in a gasp as a strong arm wrapped itself around his neck. His leafy hands immediately started trying to pull it off, but he stopped at the deep maniacal voice of Negaduck.

"Well, well, well. Isn't this charming? Helping out the weeds now are we, Darkwing?" snickered Negaduck.

Darkwing repeated Negaduck's words in a mocking voice. "'Helping out the weeds', eh? More like ridding this town of scum like you, Negaduck!" He took a step forward, his gas gun at the ready, when Megavolt and Quackerjack jumped out in front of him.

Quackerjack cackled with glee. "What's your rush, Dorkwing? We were just about to get the grill going for the barbecue!"

"Yeah!" sneered Megavolt. "Featuring: roast duck and grilled vegetables!"

"Ugh, what do YOU guys want? Can't you see I'm in the middle of something?!" whined Darkwing.

"Too bad. This doesn't concern you, Dip Wing. This is between Bushy and me." Negaduck gripped Bushroot's neck even tighter. A moment later he shouted in alarm as Bushroot grew out his vine-like arms and tripped the yellow-clad villain. As Negaduck fell, his grip loosened and Bushroot was able to get free. "Arrrrghh! You KNOB!" He stood up and watched as Bushroot ran as fast as he could towards the center of the city.

Bushroot didn't pay any mind to Darkwing or the others. He knew where he had to go. He knew Dandren was still at the center of the city. He could tell from his telepathy. The volume of the plant's voices rang louder in his mind the closer he got.

'Master!' cried voices of his children as he ran past them.

'Master, Dandren is waiting for you!'

Bushroot ignored them and ran back to where Dandren stood the entire time during the war. The large tree moved its branches in a welcoming way as it saw its master come to him.

'Master, you have returned! I am grateful to see it!'

Bushroot rushed up to Dandren's trunk. He stopped, panting for breath, feeling bliss as he knew he was in the company of Dandren. "Oh, Dandren! It's so good to see you!" His eyes then widened as he remembered why he had needed to find Dandren so quickly. He was so used to being comforted by the large tree's presence after all these years.

"Dandren! I-" For the second time that night, Bushroot was suddenly at a loss of breath as Negaduck's hand wrapped around his throat, making sure it was harder for Bushroot to try to bite him again. "Ah! Negaduck! Please...I just have to-"

"Shut it, bush breath! I don't want to hear another word from you. In fact" he leaned up towards Bushroot's ear since the mutant duck was taller. "I don't want to know the knowledge that air moves in and out of your lungs with each breath. I want that to stop. NOW!"

Negaduck was about to strangle him to death when a large branch wrapped its way around Negaduck's torso from behind. "What the-!" cried the mallard menace and letting go of Bushroot in the process. A string of curses came out of the mallard's mouth as he wriggled in the branches tight confines. "Just wait until I can reach my chainsaw you pile of splinters!"

Bushroot regained his breath before looking up to see Darwking, Megavolt, and Quackerjack a ways away. Darkwing was trying to avoid some of Quackerjack's toy teeth as the jester giggled hysterically.

"Finally! My turn to have some fun!" cackled Quackerjack. None of them seemed aware that Negaduck was currently trapped in Dandren's branches.

"Darkwing!" cried a voice from the other direction.

Darkwing looked up in horror as he watched his ill daughter run up to him and tackle him in a large hug. Darkwing looked down at her with wide eyes. "GOSALYN! What are YOU doing here!?"

"I had to-come here and let you know that I was okay! Launchpad said you were really worked up-about having seen me all-beat up" explained the duckling through pants of breath. Gosalyn was soaked to the bone due to the rain, just like the rest of them, but the fatherly side of Darkwing could tell that it wasn't all water. Her feathers were covered in a thin layer of sweat as well.

"Ugh! YOU should not be here!" groaned Darkwing as he pulled her close. "Ugh, that's what I get for leaving Launchpad to look after you! I should have KNOWN you'd manage to sneak past him!"

Gosalyn simply gave him a sheepish smile.

"Bushroot, I swear to God, if you don't tell this overgrown weed to put me down, I'll make sure you become a compost heap!" shouted Negaduck in pure rage as Dandren continued to hold him tightly in the air.

Bushroot was about to react when Dandren took more of his branches and snatched Megavolt. "HEY! Let go of me, you crazy tree!" growled the rodent. His helmet began to spark as he began to attack with electricity, but the heavy rain made his precious electricity useless since he was burnt out. "D'oh! I hate the rain!"

Quackerjack tried to jump out of the way with one of his back flips, but another branch caught him from behind. "Hey! No fair! You have too many branches, I can't keep track of them all!" whined the jester. He wriggled his hands in hopes to get out more of toy teeth. The toys fell to the ground instead. "Attack! Attack the tree, my little beauties!" However, the toy teeth took one look at Dandren, whimpered in fear, and began chomping their way to a different direction down the street. Quackerjack gasped loudly as he watched them go. "TRAITORS!"

"Doooh! If I wasn't shorted out, I'd be making you into a barbecued twig right about now!" shouted Megavolt angrily from his wooden prison.

"Reggie!" came Liquidator's voice.

Darkwing smacked himself in the forehead. "What is this, a party?"

No one seemed to hear Darkwing's jibe.

Liquidator just barely managed to dodge one of Dandren's branches. "Hey now! Nobody likes an unhelpful hand!" He dodged and slithered his way over to Bushroot. "Reggie! What's going on!?"

Bushroot winced. "Everything is going out of control, Buddy! Dandren has taken over and none of my plants will listen to me anymore!"

Liquidator and Bushroot looked over just in time to avoid being hit by one of Dandren's branches at the tree tried to keep hold of his prisoners.

Darkwing was still holding on tight to Gosalyn as they were snatched from the ground. Darkwing had seen the branch coming but only had a chnace to tuck Gosalyn closer to him, before they were snatched up. "Brace yourself!" Darkwing warned Gosalyn. Last thing Darkwing wanted to do was lose his ill daughter in the rain.

Bushroot watched in horror and disbelief as Dandren started taking his long roots and climbing up the side of the large building that had been beside them. The final branch of Dandren snatched him up just as the last root was about to leave the ground; bringing him along for the ride.

Liquidator, unable to be caught by Dandren due to his liquid body, followed suit by morphing his torso longer so that he could reach the rooftop as well.

'I have had enough of this master. It is time to end it all. And the best place to do it is a place where all the plant world can see us.'

As he climbed, Dandren's roots crashed into the glass of the windows, allowing the large tree to have steps. The kidnapped group struggled the entire way up, crying out threats that Dandren paid no attention to. After what seemed like ages, Dandren finally managed his way to the top of the building. He tromped his way over to the center of the rooftop and placed everyone down on the ground. He dropped Negaduck last, making sure the duck's fall was unpleasant. He knew very how much torment this particular duck had given his master over the years. More than any of the others.

"Alright, now that the kiddie ride is over" spat Negaduck as he pushed himself up off the roof's cement.. "It's time to get serious..." His dangerous eyes were only on Bushroot as he brought out his precious chainsaw. Bushroot eyes widened in fear as he started to back away, being mindful that they were on a rooftop and that he could fall off it.

"Stop right there, Negaduck!" shouted Darkwing, but it was no use.

"Hey, Darky, the boss is busy! But we'll play with you!" teased Quackerjack. Darkwing turned around just in time to see Quackerjack do a somersault and kick him hard in the ribs, sending him backwards. Gosalyn had dodged just in time to avoid getting hit as well.

"Hey, clown-face!" she hollered at the jester. She pulled out Darkwing's gas gun that she had snatched from her father's cloak. "SUCK GAS!" She pulled the trigger and suddenly Quackerjack and Megavolt were assaulted with smoke, causing them to cough and groan in unison.

Meanwhile, Negaduck turned on his chainsaw, smiling wickedly at the purring sound it made. The villain raised the chainsaw, ready to attack, when someone tapped him on the shoulder. His eyes flaring, he turned around. "CAN'T YOU SEE I'M BUSY?" As soon as the words were out of his beak, his eyes widened in fear at the sight before him. Dandren took a large branch and smacked Negaduck right across the face, knocking the evil mallard out cold, his chainsaw sputtering to a halt.

Bushroot sighed with relief. He then looked up at Dandren and knew the time had come.

'Master. Please listen. I want you to understand that all I want is for you to be happy.'

"I am happy." It was a weak come back, seeing as his very being said otherwise. He was very aware that he was currently standing around a group of people who couldn't hear Dandren the way he could. He probably looked crazy as he spoke to Dandren but he didn't care. He also tried his hardest to ignore Megavolt, Quackerjack, Darkwing, and Gosalyn as they fought each other.

'You are not. You tried living the life of a villain, and you did manage to find some friends, but look at them. They ridicule you and use you only for their needs.'

Bushroot turned away from Dandren, not wanting to hear it.

'You know I am right, Master...'

The sound of an engine could suddenly be heard and Bushroot looked over and saw that Launchpad had arrived with the Thunderquack. The aircraft hovered above the rooftop before suddenly crashing into the rooftop. Steam came out of the now slightly bent hood of the Thunderquack. Launchpad poked his head out from the inside and nervously laughed. "Heh heh, Sorry about that DW!"

"LAUNCHPAD! I TOLD YOU TO WATCH GOSALYN!" shouted Darkwing angrily before dodging another attack from Quackerjack.

"I'm sorry, DW!" he heard the large pilot say. "But she got away from me!"

Ignoring them, Bushroot looked down at the ground. So much was going on around him, it was hard for him to concentrate.

'Did you honestly think that you would be able to change your ways? Villainy has always been your only path. Without your villainy, you will succumb to depression. Turning away from villainy would mean complete and utter loneliness. You can never fit in with the likes of...Darkwing...'

The next thing Bushroot knew was that comforting liquid arms were draped around his shoulders. Liquidator gently placed his chin on Bushroot's shoulder, speaking quietly in his ear. "Reggie, ignore Dandren. I don't know what he's telling you, but don't listen." He gently turned Bushroot around so that they were facing each other. "Does this have anything to do with what you said about not wanting to be a villain?"

Bushroot looked away but that was all the answer Liquidator needed.

"Reggie, I told you. You'll make it harder on yourself by not being a criminal. I'm not saying you have to be in the Top Ten Super Villains, but its a part of yourself you're going to have to get used to. And I'll be right by your side the whole time, guaranteed!"

Bushroot debated what his friend had just said. For the last several years, ever since his mutation, he'd done evil things. But, over the last few weeks, he's wondered if that is truly what he wanted. If he had truly meant any of it or if it was really just him acting out in his pain. He didn't want to be hated, he wanted to be loved. Bushroot looked over to see Darkwing quickly checking over Gosalyn before handing her over to Launchpad. Quackerjack and Megavolt seemed to have taken a break from fighting them, catching their breath. His eyes then turned back to Liquidator. "I don't know what I want, Buddy."

Liquidator leaned in even further and spoke softly, "You still love me, right? Because, Reg, if you do, just come with me and I'll help you through all this, I promise!"

Bushroot almost looked guilty. "Buddy, if I go with you, I know I'm going to end up doing things I don't want to do anymore. I do love you, but when I'm around you, I'm afraid of who I become. You're a villain and you cheat, and lie, and steal on a daily basis. I don't want to do any of those things! So, how can I be with you if you'll just influence me to do that stuff!"

Liquidator took a step back, his dog ears lowering, and a heartbroken look on his face. "Reggie, it doesn't have to be that way..."

"Bushroot!" cried the small, yet spirited voice of Gosalyn.

Bushroot looked over to her, grateful for the distraction as he stepped away from Liquidator. He smiled and asked, "Are you okay?"

Gosalyn slowly walked over to the mutant, ignoring her father's cries to come back that instant. She stopped before Bushroot, who looked down at her sweetly. He could tell she was truly fighting to keep herself going. He could see all the bandages that covered her cuts and the bruises she received when she had been thrown through the window.

"Yeah, I'm okay" she replied with a grin. "It takes more than a tree and window crash to get rid of me!" Bushroot smiled at her words.

"I'm sorry..." he lamented.

Gosalyn blinked. "Why are you saying sorry? You didn't push me through the window."

"Yes, but-I kidnapped you-"

"Yeah, and you told me the only reason you did was because of Negaduck" she referred to the unconscious duck. "Bushroot, all I'm trying to say is, I honestly don't think you're a bad person. You're just a person who's had bad stuff happen to you. Like me. I mean, I lost my parents and grandpa. I was an orphan and I've seen a lot of bad stuff for a kid my age, but here I am. I'm a good person."

Bushroot seemed amazed by her speech as he smiled down at her. He nudged her back towards a displeased Darkwing.

"Get back here, young lady!" reprimanded the vigilante.

'Master, please tell me you are not going to listen to that brat. She is trying to brainwash you. So is your precious 'Buddy'. I know longer trust him either. Please, tell me you are not going to trust either of them!'

"Yes, I am going to..." he whispered.

'Well, then master. I am afraid I am going to have to knock some sense into you...'

Bushroot looked up, out over the city, a look of confusion on his face. It was then, out of pure instinct, that he managed to duck just in time before Dandren's large branch hit him.

Panicking and knowing it was now time to act, Bushroot ran over to Launchpad. "Do you have any oil or gasoline on you!?" he demanded. Launchpad gave him a puzzled look before muttering, "Yeah" and getting it out of the Thunderquack.

Darkwing glared at Bushroot accusingly, Gosalyn now wrapped up tightly in front of him, his cloak around her to keep her warm. "What are you planning, Bushy?"

The ex-scientist didn't reply, he had to hurry. He knew Dandren wanted to have another go at him. He ducked under another branch as he ran over to Megavolt, who had been standing there shivering due to his lack of electricity. Bushroot grabbed the rodent by the hand and dragged him back over to Launchpad.

"Hey! What's the big idea!?" demanded Megavolt as he was pulled along. Quackerjack and Liquidator could do nothing but watch on. They all ducked another branch of Dandren's and as the branch came around, Bushroot grabbed a small twig from the branch.

'Master! That hurt!'

Bushroot ignored him.

Launchpad quickly came back with a can of gasoline. Bushroot snatched the can of gasoline from him and poured the gasoline over the twig. He then whirled back around to face Megavolt. "Megs, please! Just try one little spark! That's all I need!" he begged at the rodent. "I know you shorted out, but, please I just need one spark!"

Megavolt regarded his friend with wide eyes. "Oh!" cooed Megavolt in intrigue. "A little spark? Eh, I should be able to handle that."

"Then do it! Please!"

Megavolt snapped his fingers several times, trying to make the smallest of sparks come out from his fingers. Meanwhile, Bushroot made sure the gasoline-covered branch was inches away from his hand. Suddenly, a small blue spark emitted from the tips of Megavolt's fingers.

Bushroot pressed the twig carefully towards it. The spark didn't last long since Megavolt was shorted out, but the spark allowed the twig to catch fire. He quickly ran towards Dandren, making sure the twig didn't get wet or that he caught himself on fire.

"Come on, come on, come on!" he ranted quietly to himself as he did all this. The small fire was just enough as he watched it grow on the twig like a torch. With his free hand, Bushroot leaned down and grabbed the can of gasoline he'd dropped there and started squirting as much of it on Dandren as he could. He just hoped that the fire and gasoline would be enough; Dandren was such a large tree.

Once he squirted some on Dandren, he threw the twig up in Dandren's branches, hoping the leaves would start to burn. He just prayed it would work. It didn't help that it was raining.

The fire caught quick and spread just as fast.

Dandren shook his branches back and forth, trying to get the quickly growing fire out.

'Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Master! Why!? Oh, Master, it hurts! IT BURNS!'

Bushroot covered his ears, knowing it was useless. The guilt he felt inside for doing this to Dandren was enough to drown out his soul. He didn't need to hear Dandren's cries of pain. Dandren tromped back and forth, but to no avail. The fire continued to grow with the aide of the gasoline Bushroot had thrown on him. The tree stumbled, tromping further back until at last, he reached the edge.

Quackerjack's voice barely registered past all the howls of pain Dandren was making in his telepathy. "TIMMMBEEEEEERRRR!" Megavolt, Quackerjack, Liquidator, Darkwing, Launchpad, and Gosalyn all watched as the tree swayed back and forth in its fight for balance as the fire raged on; Negaduck still unconscious several yards away.

Dandren tried to gain his balance, but the large old tree was too overcome by the laws of gravity and in the late night of pouring rain, fell over the large building, burning to his death.

Bushroot fell to his knees, curling up into a ball on the cement of the roof. He sobbed, not caring who was there to watch him. They heard the enormous crash of Dandren falling onto the ground, his cries still ringing in Bushroot's mind. All of his other plant children were deathly silent. It unnerved him.

He sat there and sobbed. "I'm sorry, Dandren..."

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	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

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Bushroot numbly felt being drug along as Darkwing brought him up to his feet. He stared into space, tears rolling down his cheeks. He didn't know how long he was standing there on the rooftop, moments after he had just murdered-Murdered!-his best friend!

"Alright, Bushroot, alright" he could hear the vigilante saying. "Let's not bring the water works."

In his numbed state, Bushroot could feel a slight twinge of irritation at Darkwing's obviously insensitive comment, but he didn't have the strength to to fuss over it. He simply shrugged the other mallard off.

On the other side of the roof, Megavolt and Quackerjack were slowly gathering the still unconscious Negaduck up by his arms. "Figures! We have to clean up after the boss!" tsked the jester.

Megavolt frowned when he watched Quackerjack start to pick Negaduck up. "Oh, no! I am NOT hauling him around everywhere!"

Quackerjack, who had a grip on Negaduck's arm, looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. "Oh? And how do you suppose ol' Negsy-Butt will like it when he learns we left him behind to get hauled off to jail?"

The electrified rodent's eyes widened as he gulped. "Not well, I'd imagine." He sighed. "Fiiiiine!"

" Well then come on, Megsy! Now is the time to vamoose!"

Megavolt didn't need to be told twice as the two of them managed to make their way off the roof with Negaduck thanks to some of Quackerjack's handy air mattress that they used to get down safely.

Darkwing grunted as he watched them go, even going as far as to step towards them, but he glanced back at Bushroot. He was torn between chasing after them or staying to see what Bushroot and Liquidator were going to do. He pulled down on his hat in consternation.

"You're just letting them go, DW?" asked Launchpad as he stepped up next to the smaller mallard.

Darkwing snarled under his breath. "No...I am NOT 'letting just them'. I can giving them a head START!"

Faintly, as though in a distance, they could hear sirens. An ambulance. Fire fighters down below. The fire from Dandren had spread to several nearby cars that had been parked along the side of the road. The rain slowly stopped, until it was just a fine mist.

Bushroot felt someone hugging him and looked over to see that it was Liquidator, his liquid arms sending him the usual comfort on his plant skin.

"I'm sorry, Reggie. I know how much Dandren meant to you" he said quietly.

Bushroot looked away, shrugging off Liquidator's arms. This only caused the canine to become more concerned.

"Reggie?"

Bushroot sniffled and wiped some of the dried tears off his cheeks. "Buddy, I know you mean well, but I'm going to need some time."

Liquidator titled his head to the side, not understanding. He sloshed his way in front of the floral duck. "Don't be so hard on yourself, Reggie! Every good gardener makes a few mistakes and looses a few crops from time to time."

Bushroot shook his head. "I'm not talking about Dandren!" he snapped.

Both of them were suddenly aware that Darkwing, Launchpad, and Gosalyn were still on the roof. Darkwing, who had been watching them, quickly turned away to give them some privacy, suddenly fascinated in one of the band aids on Gosalyn's forehead.

"Oh, look! There is a stain in my cape!" exclaimed Darkwing in mock interest.

Launchpad leaned over to look at the cape that Darkwing was examining for the sake of having something to do. "There isn't any stains on it" he pointed out.

Darkwing stepped on Launchpad's foot, causing the pilot to cry out.

Liquidator and Bushroot rolled their eyes, though appreciated the impromptu privacy. The liquid canine turned serious as he asked, "Then what DO you mean?"

Bushroot finally met Liquidator's eyes. "I told you before, I need to be away from the influence of crimes. I can't stand it anymore! I just need some time to think!"

Liquidator stepped forward, a frantic look on his face. "Are you confused? Are you uncertain? Then don't be a coward and run away from your fears! Face them!" The mutant plant duck winced and Liquidator suddenly felt awful. He quickly back tracked. "Reggie-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to call you a coward!"

"But that's exactly what I am, Buddy!" whimpered Bushroot, fresh new tears coming to his eyes. "I am a coward! A coward who's not good enough to be dating someone as amazing as you! I've never understood what you see in me, Buddy and I probably never will! But for right now, I just need to be alone. Don't follow me, don't come find me. Don't even bother looking for me!"

Liquidator looked as though he wanted desperately to protest and he made sure he did loud and clear. "Reggie, I can't! I love you!"

Bushroot nodded, wiping away his tears. "I know you do, Bud. And I love you too, but we can't be together right now. Not until I sort all this out." Liquidator went to say more but Bushroot cut him off. "If you love me, Buddy, then you'll give me my space. Please?"

The ex-salesman frowned, looking very displeased, but he bowed his head and nodded. "Fine, Reg, but I'm not happy about this at all. It's not fair! You should be able to talk to me about this! I don't love you because you're a villain, I love you for you!"

"But you're still a villain and I can't be around criminals of any sort right now. It bothers me too much. Besides, I have to go into hiding for a while anyways. Negaduck is pissed with me and I know that's not the last I've seen of him. He's going to want to get back at me for all of this and for quitting the Five."

The watery dog looked like he wanted to say so much more, but instead he gently took a hand and caressed Bushroot's right cheek. "I'll be waiting for you, Reggie."

Bushroot nodded. "Thank you. I love you."

"Love you too." They leaned in toward each other and kissed, which lingered longer than either of them planned. Liquidator then turned and jumped off the side of the roof, his liquid body unaffected by the height of the fall.

The floral duck looked over to where Darkwing and Launchpad were still standing near the Thunderquack. He could see Gosalyn, who was now in Darkwing's arms, was struggling to keep her eyes open. A tiny smile came upon his beak at the thought that at least one person still seemed to want to be his friend. Gosalyn had been so sweet to him and it appeared that Darkwing understood that this whole mess hadn't been his fault. .Or at least, he hoped so. The vigilante had yet to place him in hand cuffs, at the very least.

Seeing that Liquidator had left, Darkwing cleared his throat and walked over to him. Gosalyn was resting her head on his shoulder. "I've got to hand it to you, Bushroot, I didn't think it would be you saving the day, but you did." Bushroot's foliage perked up at the praise. "And...you've recently saved Gosalyn from falling off a roof, and I guess I never...properly thanked you..." Darkwing was staring at the ground at this point. Anyone could tell that it was hard for Darwking to admit all this. Not to mention all the damage it was doing to his ego. "I guess you're not so bad after all..."

Bushroot beamed at these words. "I-I really didn't mean for any of this to happen! I guess that things just got out a of control. I really never meant for anyone to get hurt..."

"Bushroot?" asked Gosalyn. Bushroot turned his head down to her and saw she was fighting to stay awake as she rested his head in the crook of her father's neck. "Are you gonna to go back to being evil?"

Bushroot thought a moment about this question, then promptly shook his head. "I couldn't even if I wanted to. Negaduck would surely kill me the next time we saw each other. And I really don't want to be evil. I told Liquidator not to come and find me and I hope he respects me enough to do as I wish. I just-I need to get away from all this for a while. I really do want to reform!" He looked up at Darkwing. "Am I asking too much?"

Darkwing was suddenly reminded of Morgana McCawber, the love of his life. She had spoken about how hard it was to reform and how no one ever believed them when a villain wanted to. Unbidden, Darkwing began feeling sorry for the poor mutant plant duck. "No, Bushy, you're not. I can respect that." He then added quickly. "But don't expect me to just let you off easy, mister! I'm gonna be watching you VERY carefully!"

Bushroot just smiled at the hero, knowing the shorter mallard was only saying that for the sake of his overly large ego. "That's fine."

No one spoke for a long moment, then Gosalyn piped up, a little more energy in her voice. "Bushroot, will you be my friend?" Darkwing shifted at this questioned, yet kept his beak shut.

Bushroot's eyes widened in surprise. "Y-You're just saying that..."

"I am not. I really do want to be your friend. I want to help you reform" argued Gosalyn. "Why would I lie to you?"

"Many reason!" shot back Bushroot as he looked away. This conversation was beginning to make him nervous. He wasn't used to any of this!

"If it's a friend you need Bushroot, you really couldn't ask for a better friend than Gosalyn" commented Launchpad.

Bushroot slowly nodded, taking into consideration what he was being offered. "Yeah, we can be friends."

"Keen gear! I'm friends with a mutant plant duck! Wait till my friends at school here at this! They won't believe me!" snickered Gosalyn gleefully despite her tiredness.

Bushroot chuckled nervously.

Darkwing tittered a bit, battling over whether he should speak or not. He eventually decided to. "As for Negaduck-" He paused, looking away as well. It made him look bad, in his opinion. He didn't want to look like a sissy hero, but he knew he had to. He cleared his throat. "As for Negaduck, I'll make sure he doesn't bother you. Seeing as-Seeing as you're not a villain anymore..and are trying to reform. You are a -"he mumbled something to himself too softly to be heard. He sighed when he saw their stares and spoke louder. "A normal citizen now, it is my job to protect you, as I do everyone else from Negaduck and other convicts."

Bushroot wrung his hands together. "You mean it?"

"Yes."

"We can be friends now, Bushroot. You won't have to turn to crime and evil anymore. You can be with us. You can fight back against Negaduck, with our help!" encouraged Gosalyn.

Darkwing gave out a nervous laugh. "Gosalyn, let's not rush on this!"

"I would love to be your friend, Gosalyn" Bushroot said at last, a smile on his beak as he looked down at the cement. Gosalyn beamed at his reply, then winced as she rubbed one of the arms on her cuts. She couldn't help but let out a small "Ouch."

Darkwing responded in a heartbeat. "Now there, missy, you're going straight home!"

"But what about Bushroot!?" demanded the little red head.

Darkwing grimaced. "Well-" He looked up at the plant mutant.

"He could come back to the Tower with us" offered Launchpad.

Darkwing shot the pilot a furious glare. "LP!" he hissed.

Bushroot shrugged. "I'll be fine..."

"But he has no where to go!" insisted Gosalyn worriedly. "Negaduck knows where he lives!"

Darkwing facepalmed with his free hand. "Uhhh...Well then, I suppose...He could come back to the tower with us..." Gosalyn beamed at this. "But you'll have to be blind folded! Just as a precaution!" Darkwing added quickly.

"Fair enough" shrugged Bushroot. "But...I won't be able to come right away...I need to clean up the mess that I started, after all..." He looked down at all the confused plants, wondering what they were supposed to do next. Bushroot could hear most of the crying in agony at the loss of Dandren. He knew the death of Dandren would not be something to easily get over. He sighed, knowing he would have to go back to his children and explain to them what took place. He just prayed they would be able to understand. "I'm...going to go back to my Greenhouse. I'll take all my plants back...if I can. These days I don't even know if they'll do as I ask them to...And after what happened to Dandren, I really don't know..."

"Fine" said Darkwing, holding onto Gosalyn tighter. "If you want we'll pick you up later at the Greenhouse."

"I can cook some burgers later!" interjected Launchpad happily. Darkwing just shook his head before they walked away.

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Sorrow. Sorrow was what Bushroot felt as he made his way down to be with his plants. It seemed like even the air itself was filled with remorse. Everything seemed to be going in slow motion. He was now down where the burning ashes of Dandren lay, still smoking after the fire fighters had hosed him down.

Taking his leaf hand, Bushroot gently caressed what was once Dandren's large trunk. All the leaves were gone, most of the branches smoldered, roots destroyed. All that was left was the large section of Dandren's trunk, which was fully burnt to the core. He frowned when he saw a strange purple dusting on one of the last remaining branches. He ran his digits over the powdery substance; confused. There was then a loud cawing sound and Bushroot spun around to look up at one of the lamp posts that was still standing.

Sitting on top of it was the same crow he had seen several days ago when it had attacked him. He knew for it had the little red hat on its head. The crow took off into flight a moment later.

Bushroot turned away to focus on reality, not caring to think of any rhyme or reason to the crow. Tears spilled down his cheeks as he remembered all the times he'd gone to Dandren after having a bad day, telling him anything he wanted.

'Poor Master'

'Poor Dandren. Such a terrible fate.'

His plants were slowly making there way to where their master stood, crying for the great Dandren who had meant so much to them. Dandren had been an idol to the plants, seeing as how he had been so close with their master.

Bushroot was soon surrounded by his children, feeling the slightest bit of happiness that they had not turned on him after what had happened.

"I didn't mean for any of this to happen..." whispered Bushroot, his voice filled with pain. He supposed he was talking to Dandren as he continued to touch the smoldered pieces of bark. He knew the tree was gone forever, but a part of him still felt as though he needed to explain himself. "You were so great to me. I couldn't have asked for anyone better. You always listened to me like no one else had. Well, until the very end. Things got confusing there and we were both unsure of what the other wanted. Its like something had happened to you to change so drastically near the end there. But that's alright now. I forgive you...I suppose this whole time you were just trying to make me happy, as you've always said you were doing. I guess I should've kept my beak shut, for none of this would have happened if I had. It's my fault this happened to you..."

A small maple tree sapling that was about Bushroot's height came up from behind him and took one of its branches and gently tickling his cheek with its leaves. Bushroot smiled, turning to all the plants around him.

"Let's go home..." he said at last, rubbing his cheeks, which were still covered with tears.

'Yes, master. Home.'

'Yes, we will go home now.'

'The war is over.'

'We didn't win...'

Bushroot blinked at that last comment. He stopped, looking up and around at his plants. Worry, pain, and panic covered his face and could be heard in his voice as he spoke. "No...No, we did win..."

'We won?'

'How? Dandren is gone...'

'You are still unhappy.'

"No. I am very happy! Thanks to all this, I now have a friend. Her name is Gosalyn. She wishes to be a great friend of mine, which means she's willing to be friends with all of you. You'll see, things are going to change." There was a pause. "I mean, yes, I am unhappy. Unhappy that Dandren was killed, but there is nothing that can be done about it. And I still have Buddy, even though I told him to stay away for a while. Dandren would have been proud knowing that I am now happy...You see?"

'You make sense, master.'

'Yes, we understand.'

'We will be friends with this Gosalyn too.'

Bushroot smiled at this, wiping away the last of his tears. "Good, now let's go home!" He raised his arms and on command all the plants started making there way back to the Greenhouse. As they went, it made Bushroot shudder as he looked to see all the damage his plants had made. Thankfully he didn't seem to be blamed for the damage.

Yet.

Bushroot groaned. Darkwing may not blame him, but that didn't mean the rest of the world didn't. Bushroot sighed and gave a lopsided smile. "It certainly is hard being the only mutant plant duck..."

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The evening sunset fell down on the city with not a cloud in the sky the next day. The day before had been spent cleaning up the remains of the plant war. As Bushroot had predicted, he had been blamed for the damage, but it did not bother the mutant duck as long as Darkwing did not blame him or try to arrest him.

"Come oooooon, daaaaaaad!" whined Gosalyn.

"I said 'no', Gosalyn!" came Darkwing's angry reply on the other side of the room.

Bushroot looked over from looking out the large window of Audoben Bay Tower and smiled. On the other side of the room sat a very angry Gosalyn. She was not getting her way since her father wouldn't let her do much due to her injuries, which were practically healed in Gosalyn's opinion!

"Don't worry, Gosalyn" said Bushroot as he walked over and took off one of her bandages. "You're healing really fast and that aloe plant I gave you seems to be helping your skin and feathers a lot." Gosalyn wasn't able to keep her angry face for very long once Bushroot started talking.

She crossed her arms with a gentle scowl aiming for Darkwing on the other side of the room. "Yeah! Exactly! I feel fine, but HE doesn't think so!"

"I'd take you to my Greenhouse, but it can get kind of crazy in there due to my plants and experiments. And I'm not sure Darkwing would like that" suggested Bushroot sadly.

Gosalyn scoffed. "Wouldn't keep me from being your friend, if that's what you're getting at." she replied back. She already knew Bushroot was the type for self pitying. Not that she minded, her dad could be the same way sometimes too.

Bushroot turned around and sighed. He could see Darkwing talking with Launchpad about something over near the Ratcatcher. He then turned back to Gosalyn, trying to come to grips with this new part of his life.

"I don't really care what my dad thinks" continued Gosalyn. "I'm going to see your plants. I saw them the last time I was there...Before that demented tree threw me through a window..." Her last comment was a bit sour.

Bushroot winced. "Sorry about that. I promise, my plants won't do that you the next time." Gosalyn just beamed at this.

Gosalyn kept close to her promise and became fast friends with Bushroot. She seemed fascinated by all his plants. Darkwing was still rather unsure of the whole ordeal, yet he allowed the plant duck inside his hideout, blind folded, of course. Bushroot couldn't blame him. It couldn't be helped that Bushroot had guessed where the hideout was anyways, since there were large windows overlooking the city, but at least he didn't know how to get in without climbing or flying the high height of the Tower. He figured he owed it to Darkwing to keep his secret; he was protecting the mutant from the likes of Negaduck, afterall.

Launchpad was as friendly as ever near him. Actually, he was always friendly, period. He missed Dandren greatly, but it had been the only choice. If he wanted to make a new life and have friends, there were simply some things he had to change and get rid of. And sadly, Dandren had been one of those changes.

He often thought about Liquidator, wondering what the liquid canine was doing. But as he had told Buddy, he needed this time away. Perhaps someday he would be able to be closer to the life of crime again, for the time being, he needed this change of pace.

He walked back over to the window where he had placed a small pot. Inside was a small little sapling with one leaf. It had been a seed found from the remains of Dandren. He took it as a sign of a fresh start.

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